New innovation to ease container deposit burden on local importers

A ship loads Maersk shipping containers at the Port of Balboa in Panama City on April 8, 2026. [AFP]

Kenyan importers are set to gain greater access to container-related financing following a partnership between AP Moller-Maersk and Viaservice-Ke, a subsidiary of Switzerland-based Viatrans SA.

The partnership will give eligible Maersk customers access to the Viaservice Container Solution (VCS), a digital trade-financing platform designed to reduce working capital businesses tie up in container deposits.

Container deposits have long been a financial burden for importers, freight forwarders and other supply-chain businesses. Shipping lines typically require customers to provide refundable cash deposits as security before releasing containers.

For firms handling multiple containers, the deposits tie up significant amounts of working capital for months, limiting their ability to finance daily operations, acquire equipment or pursue new business opportunities.

Under VCS, the partnership provides a financial guarantee to the shipping line on behalf of an eligible customer. This allows the container to be released without the customer paying the traditional cash deposit upfront. Instead, the customer pays Viaservice a small non-refundable fee under agreed terms.

Viaservice Regional Managing Director John Mathenge said the partnership would expand access to digital trade-financing solutions and help address capital constraints affecting logistics businesses.

Maersk, a Danish international container shipping company, handles 292,000 to 300,000 container units (TEUs) annually at Mombasa Port, accounting for 28 to 30 per cent of the port's total container throughput.

Logistics firms say the partnership would put previously idle capital back into circulation, enabling them to invest, expand and strengthen their capacity while improving efficiency across regional trade corridors.

“VCS focuses on addressing financing challenges faced by freight forwarders and logistics businesses, helping to accelerate cargo movement and improve efficiency across the logistics sector,” Mathenge said.

He said extending the service to more customers would enable businesses to improve cash flow, optimise operations and move cargo more efficiently.

It joins five other shipping line networks covered by Viaservice at the Port of Mombasa, namely MSC, CMA CGM, ONE, WEC Lines, and Emirates Shipping Line, whose Kenyan agency is Blue Funnel Kenya.

Logistics experts say that the financial burden of container deposits is closely linked to the wider challenge of container turnaround and demurrage or detention charges.

Containers can remain outside shipping lines’ control longer than expected due to congestion, inadequate inland infrastructure, customs and border clearance delays, adverse weather and other disruptions.

Such delays result in demurrage charges once the agreed free period expires. For shipping lines, demurrage or detention helps compensate for the opportunity cost of containers that cannot be redeployed elsewhere.

In logistics and shipping, demurrage is charged for containers that stay too long at the port after discharge (import) or before loading (export), while a detention charge is levied when the container is out of the terminal but not returned within free time as agreed with the shipping line.

Experts in Mombasa say that efficient container turnaround is, therefore, critical to shipping lines, which need to reposition empty containers from areas of surplus to markets where they are required for exports.

For importers and freight forwarders, however, demurrage or detention fees represent a high additional cost that can increase the overall cost of doing business. Such costs are ultimately passed on to consumers.

Traders in Mombasa argue that reducing the delays associated with container deposits can help address both the financial and operational challenges facing the logistics supply chain businesses.

In an interview, Mathenge said customers using its guarantee have recorded faster cargo clearance, with container turnaround under the guarantee model improving by several days.

Maersk’s Area Managing Director for Eastern Africa Tito Okuku said the partnership would address both the operational and financial pressures facing customers.

“As Kenya continues to strengthen its position as a regional trade and logistics hub, our customers require solutions that support working capital management, reduce transaction bottlenecks and facilitate seamless movement of goods,” Okuku said.

Viatrans estimates that more than $1.5 billion (Sh194.4 billion) is tied up annually in container deposits with shipping lines across East Africa. Replacing cash deposits with guarantees could release part of this capital back into businesses, allowing companies to redirect funds towards productive activities such as purchasing trucks and other equipment, hiring staff, investing in technology and expanding operations.

Viaservice says data generated through container transactions, including payment behaviour, demurrage incidents, causes of delays and operational performance, can provide lenders with additional information when assessing logistics businesses.

Such information could help financial institutions distinguish between genuinely high-risk companies and businesses that have limited conventional credit histories but demonstrate sound operational performance.

This could be particularly important for small and medium-sized logistics companies, which often face difficulties accessing affordable financing because of limited collateral, short credit histories or perceptions of higher risk.

Viaservice says its experience in Tanzania demonstrates the potential of the model.

Since launching its solution in 2020, the company says it has served more than 65 per cent of licensed clearing and forwarding agents in Tanzania. Some smaller logistics companies have subsequently increased the volumes they handle, moving from a few shipments a month to significantly higher monthly volumes.

The company attributes part of this growth to the release of working capital previously locked in container deposits.

Viatrans SA Managing Director Morgan Lépinoy said the expansion into Kenya was significant because the Port of Mombasa serves as a gateway to several landlocked markets in East and Central Africa.

“Through the Port of Mombasa, a growing share of regional container flows can now benefit from a more efficient alternative to cash deposits,” Lépinoy said.

He said releasing capital previously held as deposits could improve liquidity and operational efficiency along regional trade corridors.

The partnership also reflects a wider shift towards digitisation in trade finance and logistics. Viaservice says technology should focus on removing practical trade barriers rather than adding complexity to supply chains already affected by multiple processes and stakeholders.

By combining operational and financial information, banks, trade-finance institutions and logistics companies could develop products better suited to the needs and risk profiles of smaller businesses, Lépinoy said.

For Kenya, the partnership comes as the country's efforts to position Mombasa as a gateway to regional markets have led to an increase in the cargo volumes handled at the facility.

The port handled a record 45.45 million tonnes of cargo and 2.11 million TEUs in 2025, underscoring the scale of the market served by shipping lines operating through the gateway.