Zimbabwe Stock Exchange Holdings and Red Sphere Microfinance, a wholly owned subsidiary of CBZ Holdings, have partnered to launch a Trade Receivables Discounting Platform through the Zimbabwe Entrepreneurship Exchange, a move aimed at improving access to working capital for businesses and easing liquidity constraints facing suppliers.

The new platform will operate as a regulated, technology-driven marketplace connecting suppliers, buyers and financiers, allowing businesses to convert unpaid invoices into cash more quickly.

In a joint announcement, the two institutions said the partnership represents a significant step towards strengthening Zimbabwe's supply chain ecosystem and improving efficiency in receivables financing.

"The partnership represents a decisive step toward providing timely liquidity to suppliers and strengthening Zimbabwe's supply chain ecosystem," the statement said.

According to the announcement, the platform is designed to improve transparency in the receivables financing market, facilitate competitive pricing of discounted trade receivables and reduce delayed payment challenges faced by Zimbabwean businesses.

Red Sphere Microfinance will serve as the anchor financing partner.

The platform will allow suppliers and buyers to onboard through a dedicated online portal and is expected to provide approved funding within 48 hours for invoices that are between 30 and 60 days old.

"This highly automated, integrated Trade Receivables Discounting Platform streamlines invoice discounting by allowing users to onboard as suppliers and buyers directly via a dedicated online portal. Designed for rapid execution, it guarantees fund disbursement within 48 hours for approved 30-day and 60-day invoices," the statement said.

ZSE Holdings Group Chief Executive Officer Justin Bgoni said the initiative expands the role of market infrastructure beyond traditional securities trading and provides a practical financing solution for small and medium enterprises.

"This partnership with Red Sphere Microfinance marks a pivotal moment in our effort to broaden the utility of ZSE's infrastructure beyond traditional securities markets," said Bgoni.

"By directing our Depository's capabilities toward trade receivables discounting, we are creating a tangible solution to the liquidity constraints that hold back Zimbabwean SMEs. We are confident that this platform will become an essential pillar of the country's financial ecosystem."

Red Sphere Microfinance General Manager Desmund Ali said the platform would help businesses maintain operations by reducing payment delays and improving access to financing.

"We have partnered with ZSE Holdings to deliver a highly automated receivables discounting model that supports faster decisioning and disbursement," said Ali.

"This platform will reduce payment delays and help businesses keep operations running without interruption. Red Sphere will play a key role in providing anchor financing and supporting prudent risk assessment based on counterparty creditworthiness. We are committed to supporting transparent, regulated financing that strengthens SMEs and improves confidence in invoice financing."

The partners said the model follows successful trends in emerging and developed markets where digital invoice discounting systems have improved access to collateral-free working capital for small and medium-sized enterprises.

The platform is expected to support Zimbabwe's broader financial inclusion agenda while providing businesses with a compliant and regulated avenue to unlock capital tied up in unpaid invoices.

ZEEX, which recently received regulatory approval, is designed to facilitate capital raising, asset tokenisation and secondary-market trading through an integrated digital platform.

The exchange said bringing SMEs, invoice-discounting instruments and tokens into a regulated environment would help boost compliance, broaden the investor base and create lower-cost financing channels for local businesses.