When it comes to international growth, many U.S. manufacturers encounter a familiar friction point. They’re thrilled to see healthy overseas demand for their goods. They’re ready to export more products, enter new markets, and increase sales.

Yet they’re constrained by a common financial reality: obtaining adequate liquidity.

One often overlooked option is government-backed export finance. Programs such as the U.S. Export-Import Bank's Working Capital Guarantee can help qualified exporters bridge liquidity gaps, support larger orders, and expand into international markets.

Government-Backed Loans Can Open New Doors for Mid-Market Exporters

The Working Capital Guarantee program originates with the EXIM Bank. Established in 1934, this self-sustaining U.S. agency exists to support American jobs, competitiveness, and economic security by enabling U.S. exports.

The Working Capital Guarantee is one of EXIM Bank's flagship programs. It enables participating lenders to extend additional working capital to qualified manufacturers and exporters.

Under the program, EXIM Bank provides a 90-percent government guarantee on eligible working capital facilities. This backstop can help lenders extend credit to exporters whose international growth may outpace the capacity of traditional financing structures.

A Competitive Advantage for Qualified Exporters

In practice, the Working Capital Guarantee can help qualified exporters:

• Borrow more funds without additional collateral requirements
• Finance receivables up to 120 days
• Obtain commercial credit to support first-time exports

Through this financing, exporters can establish credibility in overseas markets, mitigate credit and country risk, and even become more bankable within the U.S. It is designed to support growth and help U.S. companies navigate international trade more effectively.

Exporters should work with lenders experienced in trade finance and EXIM programs. Lenders with delegated authority can often streamline approval processes and help companies access liquidity more efficiently.

Unlocking Liquidity for Short- and Long-Term Export Growth

The Working Capital Guarantee fills the gap when a traditional credit facility or asset-based loan (ABL) can’t fulfill an exporter’s liquidity needs.

An OEM used the Working Capital Guarantee to overcome short-term challenges with its supply chain. Faced with an unexpected disruption in their international channel, the OEM’s sales declined while expenses increased. It left them with a significant cash shortfall that was outside the scope of their traditional credit line.

The company was able to access incremental liquidity based on its overseas sales. Through the Working Capital Guarantee, it achieved a 90 percent advance rate on export receivables and a 75 percent advance on inventory, including work in progress. This infusion of cash helped the company manage its supply chain disruption.

Another exporter, a technology company, leveraged the Working Capital Guarantee to finance rapid growth in one of their product lines. Their ABL facility, designed primarily for domestic operations, wasn’t the right fit to support their international sales. The Working Capital Guarantee injected the necessary liquidity to grow in foreign markets.

Reducing Cash Collateral Requirements on Standby Letters of Credit

Other exporters free up liquidity for growth by using the Working Capital Guarantee for situations that involve standby letters of credit (LCs). International contracts often require these instruments of trade as a performance guarantee, bid bond, or advance payment.

Through the EXIM Bank program, participating lenders can issue standby LCs with as little as 10-25 percent cash collateral from an exporter, compared with up to 100 percent without the Working Capital Guarantee. This flexibility can help mid-market firms pursue larger opportunities while retaining working capital for other activities.

Global supply chains remain dynamic, and many middle-market exporters continue to balance inventory requirements, longer payment cycles, tariff considerations, customer concentration risk, and geopolitical uncertainty. Access to flexible working capital can be an important differentiator as companies evaluate opportunities in new markets and seek to strengthen supply chain resilience.

Treating Exports as a Source of Strength—Not a Credit Risk

Many U.S.-based growers, producers, and manufacturers can benefit from the Working Capital Guarantee. It can be particularly useful for rapidly growing and emerging middle-market companies.

Ideal borrowers for the Working Capital Guarantee typically:

• Export goods or services with at least 50 percent U.S. content
• Warehouse inventory in the U.S.
• Ship products from U.S. ports
• Generate meaningful export revenue or be scaling internationally
• Require additional working capital for international growth

For exporters, access to liquidity is often the determining factor between pursuing an international opportunity and passing it up. Government-backed working capital programs can provide another avenue for financing growth, helping companies pursue expansion strategies while managing risk and preserving cash flow.

Products and services may require credit approval and may change due to market conditions. Wells Fargo Global Receivables and Trade Finance is the trade or business name in the United States for certain asset-based lending services, senior secured lending services, accounts receivable and accounts payable financing services, purchase order financing services, factoring, and letters of credit and other trade financing products of Wells Fargo & Company and its subsidiaries.

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