Namibia Country Commercial Guide
Learn about the market conditions, opportunities, regulations, and business conditions in namibia, 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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Namibia’s banking system is modern and closely tied to the South African system.  At least three of the eight licensed local commercial banks are subsidiaries of South African banks.  All local commercial banks handle international transactions and trade financing. 

Methods of Payment

Payments can be made in the following ways:

  • Direct Bank Transfers
  • Credit Cards
  • Checks
  • Debit Cards
  • Cash

There are limits on certain payment instruments within the regional payment system.  Effective June 2010, Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT) credits may not exceed N$ 5 million and EFT debits may not exceed N$ 500,000.  These limits mainly aim to reduce exposure to risk and fraud.  The use of paper checks has been completely phased out as of June 2019.          

Credit grantors use information from a credit bureau (Trans Union ITC) to assist in deciding whether or not to grant credit.  A credit bureau details the credit history of a consumer or business’s repayment performance.

The Bank of Namibia (BoN) oversees and regulates payment systems in Namibia.  The 2003 Payment System Management Act provides details on how the BoN manages the payment system.

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

To access Canada’s ICS section on financing, visit the U.S. Department of State Investment Climate Statement website.            

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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.

Limitations

As a beta product, the Chatbot is currently being tested and its responses may occasionally produce inaccurate or incomplete information. The Chatbot is trained to decline out of scope or inappropriate requests. The Chatbot’s knowledge is limited to the public information on the Export Solutions web pages of Trade.gov, which covers a wide range of topics on exporting. While it cannot provide responses specific to a company’s product or a specific foreign market, its reference pages will guide you to other relevant government resources and market research. Always double-check the Chatbot’s responses using the provided references or by visiting the Export Solutions web pages on Trade.gov. Do not use its responses as legal or professional advice. Inaccurate advice from the Chatbot would not be a defense to violating any export rules or regulations.

Privacy

The Chatbot does not collect information about users and does not use the contents of users’ chat history to learn new information. All feedback is anonymous. Please do not enter personally identifiable information (PII), sensitive, or proprietary information into the Chatbot. Your conversations will not be connected to other interactions or accounts with ITA. Conversations with the Chatbot may be reviewed to help ITA improve the tool and address harmful, illegal, or otherwise inappropriate questions.

Translation

The Chatbot supports a wide range of languages. Because the Chatbot is trained in English and responses are translated, you should verify the translation. For example, the Chatbot may have difficulty with acronyms, abbreviations, and nuances in a language other than English.

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