Finance

Taulia Helps Establish Supply Chain Financing Program for Aramco Suppliers | PYMNTS.com

Published

1 year ago

October 30, 2024

Taulia Helps Establish Supply Chain Financing Program for Aramco Suppliers | PYMNTS.com

Three organizations teamed up to provide financing for suppliers of energy and chemical company Aramco by establishing what they said is one of the world’s largest supply chain financing programs.

Aramco, Taulia and the Saudi Industrial Development Fund (SIDF) announced their signing of agreements to establish the supply chain financing solution in a Tuesday (Oct. 29) press release.

“Together with our partners, we are introducing this FinTech solution for our suppliers, offering them access to a unique and competitive financing opportunity,” Ziad T. Al-Murshed, chief financial officer and executive vice president of finance at Aramco, said in the release. “This platform also provides an investment opportunity for banks to participate as finance providers, enhancing the solution’s scale and viability.”

The new solution aims to unlock billions of Saudi Riyals in liquidity; provide Aramco’s suppliers with an alternative and competitive source of financing; enhance their liquidity and cash forecasting accuracy; and reinforce Aramco’s supply chain resilience, according to the release.

Cedric Bru, CEO at Taulia, which is an SAP company and a FinTech provider of working capital management solutions, said in the release that the solution will enable thousands of companies to access early payments.

“Our goal is to ensure that cash flows fast and easily towards suppliers,” Bru said. “When done at scale, it creates opportunities for growth and investment for these businesses. We are tremendously excited and proud to make that a reality for Aramco and its trading partners.”

It was reported in April 2021 that Aramco was exploring a supply chain finance initiative that would finance billions of dollars per month in payments to suppliers. The report said the firm had more than 10,000 suppliers in its home country of Saudi Arabia.

Energy company Eni launched a supply chain finance program designed to incentivize sustainable development in March 2023.

The company’s Sustainable Supply Chain Finance Program is focused on the energy supply chain and allows Eni’s suppliers to request advance payment of invoices if they have committed to sustainable development.

In an earlier, separate collaboration, Taulia teamed up with Visa in March to enable virtual payment credentials to work natively across SAP business applications.

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See More In: aramco, B2B, B2B Payments, commercial payments, FinTech, international, News, partnerships, PYMNTS News, Saudi Industrial Development Fund, supply chain finance, Taulila, What’s Hot, What’s Hot In B2B

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Finance

SB Financial Group Q4 Earnings Call Highlights

Published

10 hours ago

January 30, 2026

Press Room

SB Financial Group Q4 Earnings Call Highlights

SB Financial Group (NASDAQ:SBFG) management said fourth quarter and full-year 2025 results reflected continued execution across the franchise, with CEO Mark Klein calling it “one of the strongest earnings quarters and year in our history” despite ongoing pressure on mortgage activity across the indu

Finance

MUFG Seeks Stake In Indian Finance Company

Published

22 hours ago

January 30, 2026

Press Room

MUFG Seeks Stake In Indian Finance Company

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), Japan’s largest bank by assets and market cap, is close to buying a 20% minority stake in India’s Shriram Finance Limited (SFL), for an investment of $4.4 billion.

SFL is one of the largest non-banking financial companies (NBFC), with assets under management totalling approximately $31 billion.

The negotiations are ongoing, and the agreement is not yet confirmed. The price and stake size could change, the agreement may be delayed, or even fall apart in the coming days.

Shriram’s shares rose nearly 50% this year on India’s National Stock Exchange and the Bombay Stock Exchange, giving a market value of around $18 billion, marking its fifth straight year of positive returns.

The reasons for the rally were: SFL’s strong fundamentals; the Reserve Bank of India’s easing for NBFCs; India’s rising Gross Domestic Product, which is increasing demand for SFL’s core lending segments; SFL’s final 150% dividend payout; and the proposed agreement with MUFG.

MUFG is not the first bank to propose a stake in an Indian bank. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (SMFG), Japan’s second-largest bank, acquired a 20% stake in Yes Bank for $1.6 billion in May 2025, via secondary purchases from the State Bank of India and other banks. SMFG later became the single largest shareholder, acquiring a 24.2% stake in Yes Bank. It has already deployed almost $5 billion and is seeking to expand lending operations and increase employee strength.

Yet another Japanese financial group, Mizuho Securities, a unit of Mizuho Financial Group, is set to acquire a majority stake in Indian investment bank Avendus from KKR for up to $523 million in December 2025. This move will make Avendus a consolidated subsidiary of the Japanese financial group.

Some of the factors that attracted Japanese investors were India’s economic growth projected to grow at 6.5% in 2026, outpacing Japan’s stagnant domestic market, a 1.4 billion consumer base, low banking penetration, Reserve Bank of India’s robust regulatory reforms, eased foreign investment norms, and strong Japan-India collaboration in infrastructure projects like the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train.

Since announcing its deal with Shriram, MUFG has reportedly seen increased interest from automakers looking to boost sales through preferential financing. Should the acquisition close, MUFG plans to have staff in Tokyo and Singapore to develop and execute these deals.

Finance

The big retirement question Aussies are asking right now: ‘We see a jump’

Published

1 day ago

January 29, 2026

Press Room

The big retirement question Aussies are asking right now: ‘We see a jump’

HESTA CEO Debby Blakey says there’s no better time than right now to look at your super. (Source: HESTA/Getty)

January is nearly behind us and most Australians are now back into the work grind, with kids returning to school to embark on another year. With things settling back to normal, it’s prompted one big retirement question to come to the minds of many workers.

Google Trends data shows searches for ‘how much do you need to retire’ surge as the school year begins. It’s one of four major spikes, along with around the Easter holidays, end of the financial year and the September school holidays.

Super fund HESTA has reported a surge in Australians using its retirement planning tool at the start of the school year, with activity increasing by more than 40 per cent in late January and early February in 2025.

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“We regularly see a jump in planning activity around this time of year after many members have enjoyed quality time with family and friends over the festive season – be it BBQs by the beach or relaxing by the pool,” HESTA CEO Debby Blakey said.

“As Australians look ahead to the rest of the year, many ask one simple question: when can I retire?”

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There’s obviously no one-size-fits-all answer to this question.

While there’s no set retirement age in Australia, to be eligible for the Age Pension, you’ll need to be at least 67.

In terms of how much money you need, the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia’s standard estimates a single would need $595,000 and a couple $690,000 in their superannuation to retire comfortably at the age of 67. This assumes you receive a part age pension and own your home outright.

If you’re one of the many Aussies dreaming about retirement, Blakey said now was the time to take action.

“The reality is there is no better time than right now to take action on your super and it’s never too late to make a difference to your financial future,” she said.

“There are many small actions people can take to support their journey to a dignified retirement.”

To start with, Blakey said it was important to understand how much super you had, how much your employer was contributing, where your super is invested and how much it’s grown over the long-term.

The super fund’s research found a third of people were only checking their balance once a year or less, while 43 per cent were more likely to check it in times of market turbulence.