Eswatini Country Commercial Guide
Learn about the market conditions, opportunities, regulations, and business conditions in eswatini, prepared by at U.S. Embassies worldwide by Commerce Department, State Department and other U.S. agencies’ professionals
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Trade Financing
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Eswatini has several multilateral development institutions that support its project and infrastructure development. For instance, the African Development Bank is the financing institution for ESWADE’s Mkhondvo-Ngwavuma Water Augmentation Program, a significant damming and irrigation infrastructure project funded to the tune of USD213 million.

Eswatini is a member of World Bank, European Investment Bank, Kuwaiti Fund, Badea, African Development Bank (AfDB), International Finance Corporation (IFC), and Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA).

Methods of Payment

Eswatini importers utilize most of the standard payment methods available in international commerce.  The most commonly used are:

  • Cash in Advance
  • Letters of Credit (LC),
  • Bank Collections and Bills of Exchange
  • Open Account
  • Sales on Consignment
  • International Money Transfers

American exporters should offer quotations based on the f.o.b. value at the port of export.  As a general rule, such quotations should also include a statement of the actual charges for freight and insurance, plus any additional charges, to the port of delivery.  Quotations are usually in terms of the currency of the country of origin.  The terms of payment for imported goods vary according to the type of buyer and the buyer’s access to capital.

Transunion ITC is the largest credit rating agency in the country. In 2018, the central bank introduced Moody’s investor national rating services. The central bank of Eswatini regulates the national payment system of Eswatini. (https://www.centralbank.org.sz/) 

For more information about the methods of payment or other trade finance options, please read the Trade Finance Guide available at

Banking Systems

The banking system in Eswatini has three tiers of operation. There is the Central Bank, four commercial banks, and one building society.

The Central Bank of Eswatini is the monetary authority responsible for management of the country’s foreign exchange reserves, administration of exchange controls, and regulation of financial institutions.

There are four commercial banks operating in Eswatini: First National Bank of Eswatini, NedBank, SwaziBank, and Standard Bank.  The GKoE-owns Eswatini Development and Savings Bank (SwaziBank). 

Three of the four commercial banks (excluding Swazi Bank) are subsidiaries of their South African parent banks.

Each of the operating banks has at least eight branches. Normal banking services are offered at all four banks, and interest rates on borrowing are those in South Africa. The prime rate is 11.0 percent. Through Eswatini’s membership in the Common Monetary Area, after-tax profits can be repatriated anywhere the investor chooses.  The corporate tax rate is 27.5%. There are no exchange regulations affecting transactions within the CMA as of 2023.

Export financing is available through the Export-Import Bank but must be applied for by a Swati partner.  There are no Export-Import Bank bundling facilities in Eswatini. Project financing is available through such multilateral institutions as the World Bank and African Development Bank. In the past, resources have gone largely to infrastructure development, including roads and irrigation systems.

For more information on the banking system please read the section Capital Markets and Portfolio Investment of the Investment Climate Statement.

Foreign Exchange Controls

Exchange controls are currently administered by the Central Bank Exchange Control Department. All international commercial transactions must be through authorized foreign exchange dealers.

U.S. Banks & Local Correspondent Banks

Banks with correspondent U.S. banking arrangements are:

  • First National Bank of Eswatini Limited
  • Nedbank
  • Standard Bank

There are no Export-Import Bank bundling facilities in Eswatini.

Web Resources

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Global Business Navigator Chatbot Beta

Welcome to the Global Business Navigator, an artificial intelligence (AI) Chatbot from the International Trade Administration (ITA). This tool, currently in beta version testing, is designed to provide general information on the exporting process and the resources available to assist new and experienced U.S. exporters. The Chatbot, developed using Microsoft’s Azure AI services, is trained on ITA’s export-related content and aims to quickly get users the information they need. The Chatbot is intended to make the benefits of exporting more accessible by understanding non-expert language, idiomatic expressions, and foreign languages.

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