"We have full oversight of the entire transaction," says Anette Stavem Høgmoen, Head of Trade Finance at KONGSBERG.
"We use a multibank system, so we are already quite digital, but now we're taking it a step further with digital guarantees. This improves security, efficiency, transparency, and benefits the environment," she explains.
DNB is the first Nordic bank to issue a digital guarantee, recently issued on behalf of KONGSBERG.
"It’s important for our customers to digitize guarantees. The solution provides a complete overview of all incoming and outgoing bank guarantees as well as parent company guarantees," says Astrid Prestnes Nordtorp, Head of Transaction Banking at DNB.
Faster
Stavem Høgmoen sees significant advantages with digital guarantees over traditional paper guarantees.
"It's much faster, we have a better overview, and issuing and closing guarantees is much more efficient," Stavem Høgmoen says. KONSGBERG has spent considerable time sending out guarantees. "Sometimes, guarantees got lost in the mail, but with digital guarantees, they reach the recipient immediately after being sent. We also have many recipients in Europe, making this product a perfect fit for us."
More secure with everything in one place
For many issuers, it has been common to send guarantees via email or post. "Using digital guarantees is much more secure than email and mail. Now everything is within a safe framework," says Stavem Høgmoen. She also mentions that traditionally, the guarantee process has been quite paper-heavy. "We are moving away from paper, so this is a step in the right direction. It’s also a much better sustainability solution, cutting out a lot of paperwork."
With digital guarantees, everything related to the guarantee is collected in one system, both outgoing and incoming guarantees.
"Everything is gathered in one place. A guarantee can be modified along the way, and with digital guarantees, everything is in one location, and all involved parties have easy access. This greatly simplifies workflows. In addition, we gain better control over guarantees that are usually stashed away by a project manager," says Stavem Høgmoen.
Streamlined processes
DNB provides digital guarantees via Digital Vault Services (DVS), a German fintech company that has developed a solution for the issuance and storage of both bank and parent company guarantees.
"We’ve standardized the concept of a guarantee. Traditionally, each bank or insurance company had its own format. Now, a company can store all its guarantees in one place," says Oskar Rönngren, Head of DVS. The bank manager highlights that both efficiency and streamlined concepts are crucial for all businesses today.
"Sustainable solutions with less paper and more transparency are key. Internally at DNB, we also experience smoother processes, leading to better customer experiences," concludes Prestnes Nordtorp.
You can find the original article here: https://www.dnb.no/dnbnyheter/no/grunder/dnbs-forste-digitale-garanti-gar-til-kongsberg-gruppen