South Africa’s Nedbank Commercial Banking has announced an exclusive partnership with global deal-matchmaking platform Opportunity Network. The partnership is expected to become available for customers from 7 August 2022.
According to Nedbank, the Opportunity Network is a digital deal-matching platform that connects over 50,000 selected businesses and private investors to business opportunities in over 140 countries with a $500-billion transaction flow.
All its members are screened by prestigious financial institutions, professional services firms, and associations worldwide. Vetting partners include Citizens Bank, UBS, Credit Suisse, ABN Amro, Eurobank, YPO, and Boston Consulting Group, among others.
The new partnership will enable Nedbank’s clients to grow their business on a trusted and world-recognised platform. The bank says that the subscription to be on the Opportunity Network platform will be free to Nedbank Commercial Banking clients as part of its “Beyond Banking” services.
“This is an exciting partnership that unlocks opportunities for our commercial clients to connect with businesses around the world at a time when they are looking to access new international markets to promote their products and services,” says Mark Rose, Executive Head of Strategy and New Business Development at Nedbank Commercial Banking.
“This digital platform will open doors for South African businesses that wish to connect with large investment funds and business opportunities worldwide. It’s expected that the international deal network will help boost the South African market by facilitating trade ties in the region,” says Nedbank.
“Our goal is to improve the way of doing business and create equal access to opportunities, especially in countries that are experiencing great economic development, like South Africa,” said Opportunity Network CEO, Brian Pallas.
Pallas says that entering the South African market will sustainably increase the platform’s membership base. “The opportunities in South Africa, which are currently estimated to cover 60 different industries, will attract interest from partners around the world. Industrial and agricultural capacities are especially high in demand on our platform,” Pallas says.
Nedbank clients who have been on the pilot programme have said that the platform is the “perfect way of expanding to new markets.”
Buck Morrison, Sales Director at Tandem Lawn Industries, said that “Nedbank’s provision of this service provides excellent value in that it creates opportunities for business in South Africa to unlock potential across borders.”
Cindy Field, Director at LFD Group, said that “It has been productive for us, especially compared to trade shows that we’d need to get on a plane to attend.”
“The platform is very beneficial; you can have meaningful conversations at no cost, and you know the counterparts have been reasonably vetted, versus attending trade shows where it’s quite difficult to establish the integrity of whoever you’re dealing with. So, it is a fabulous platform.”
Edited by Luis Monzon
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