Veem Targets Firms’ Trade War Tariff Burden

Cross-border payments processing company Veem is targeting the cash flow burden companies face as a result of ongoing trade disputes and subsequent trade tariffs.

In a press release Monday (March 4), Veem announced the rollout of its Veem Tariff Relief program, an initiative to reimburse companies up to $1,000 for trade tariffs they pay when importing goods from China.

Veem CEO and founder Marwan Forzley said trade tariffs that were implemented two years ago have resulted in a 57 percent drop in payment size in U.S.-to-China cross-border B2B payments between 2017 and 2018, and a 50 percent drop between 2018 and 2019.

“That’s a 79 percent drop in two years that can be directly linked to the trade war,” he said. Veem’s own analysis has found that the size of these cross-border payments correlates with the size of cross-border trade deals.

“Less money sent means less business, which could spell major consequences for the economies and relations of both nations,” the company said in its release.

The program is designed for small businesses in particular, which see trade tariffs as “just another stressor and another barrier to making small businesses successful,” Forzley said. “We believe that access to the global economy is a necessity for small businesses today.”

Introduction of the program follows the company’s launch of its cross-border B2B payments rewards program last month. That solution offers businesses cash-back rewards when they use Veem to move money across borders, add new businesses to their supply chains or invoice customers. At the time the rewards program was launched, Veem also revealed it had hit its 100,000 customer mark, with Veem now operating in 96 countries.

Reports in the Wall Street Journal over the weekend said the U.S. and China are nearing a formal agreement that could come to fruition later this year in a deal that would reportedly see restrictions and tariffs lowered on some American imports.