“Policy shift towards trade finance could anchor long-term growth for Mauritius”

Dr Suresh Nanda, Managing Director, Symphony Capital Ltd

In this Q&A with BIZWEEK, Dr Suresh Nanda explains that Mauritius should be positioning itself to capture a greater share of Africa-Asia trade flows through the development of a dedicated trade finance ecosystem. With 80-90% of global trade reliant on trade finance, the island economy is exploring how its legal stability, regulatory flexibility, and strategic location can support cross-border transactions and structured finance. Drawing parallels with Dubai’s evolution into a trade and financial hub, this interview outlines the strategic rationale, competitive advantages, and key reforms that could enable Mauritius to play a greater role in regional trade finance. 

Why should Mauritius focus on trade finance?

Trade finance underpins 80-90% of global trade. Mauritius is well-positioned to serve as a bridge between Africa and Asia. Developing as a trade finance hub would drive FDI, job creation, and regional integration. While Mauritius has successfully established itself as an offshore banking center, diversifying into trade finance would reduce dependency on existing financial services and add resilience. It would attract multinational corporations and investors looking for a stable jurisdiction to conduct trade finance operations. Countries like Singapore and Dubai have built robust trade finance sectors, benefiting from their strategic locations and favorable regulations. Mauritius can adopt a similar model, offering competitive regulatory frameworks and modern financial instruments to support importers, exporters, and commodity traders.

What are the key lessons from Dubai becoming a trade finance hub?

The transformation of Dubai from a modest trading port into a global metropolis is a remarkable story of vision, ambition, and strategic planning. Over several decades, Dubai has evolved into a key hub for global trade, finance, and tourism. Unlike its wealthier neighbour Abu Dhabi, which benefited from vast oil reserves, Dubai had limited oil resources, but an unlimited appetite for progress. Rather than relying on natural wealth, the Emirate pursued an aggressive and forward-looking strategy to position itself uniquely as a global trading center by establishing a major port, an international aviation hub, a premier tourist destination, and a leading financial center. Today, Dubai’s success story stands as a modern-day case study in visionary leadership and purposeful development, an iconic example of 21^st-century transformation.

Mauritius is already well-established as a premium tourist destination and a reputable international financial center. However, by drawing inspiration from Dubai’s success story and leveraging its strategic geographic location, Mauritius has the potential to also emerge as a prominent trade finance hub. This development would not only enhance its stature as a financial center, but also serve as a powerful driver of economic growth, diversification, and regional influence.

“While Mauritius has successfully established itself as an offshore banking center, diversifying into trade finance would reduce dependency on existing financial services and add resilience.”

What advantages does Mauritius possess to become a trade finance hub?

Mauritius is uniquely positioned to emerge as a regional trade finance hub, capitalizing on its strategic location, advanced financial infrastructure, and supportive regulatory environment. Located at the crossroads of Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, Mauritius offers a natural bridge for triangular trade flows involving Sub-Saharan Africa, India, China, and the Gulf. Its GMT+4 time zone enables seamless overlaps with key global markets, ensuring efficient real-time communication and coordination.

The country benefits from a stable political and economic environment characterized by strong democratic governance, an independent judiciary, and a hybrid legal system blending civil and common law. These attributes reduce political risk – an essential consideration for international lenders and investors.

Mauritius hosts over 20 international and domestic banks with expertise in corporate and trade finance. The local financial ecosystem includes development finance institutions (DFIs), funds, and family offices engaged in cross-border transactions and structured finance. This makes it well-equipped to support trade finance solutions such as supply chain finance, invoice discounting, and syndicated lending.

The regulatory framework is transparent and business friendly. The Financial Services Commission (FSC) and the Bank of Mauritius (BoM) are receptive to innovation, actively promoting digital finance through sandbox regimes and emerging technologies like blockchain. The tax regime is equally attractive, featuring no capital gains tax, low corporate tax rates (15%, often lower with incentives), and no exchange controls.

Mauritius’s strong trade ties across Africa, through multilateral agreements like COMESA, SADC, and AfCFTA, reinforce its role as a gateway to the continent. The jurisdiction has a proven track record of facilitating Africa-bound investments, which can be extended to trade finance initiatives.

Moreover, its bilingual proficiency in English and French enables smooth engagement across both Anglophone and Francophone Africa, simplifying documentation, negotiations, and legal coordination. Legal certainty is further enhanced by institutions like the Mauritius International Arbitration Centre (MIAC), which offer internationally recognized dispute resolution mechanisms.

Ongoing investments in digital infrastructure, including KYC utilities, national trade platforms, and fintech partnerships, are creating an enabling environment for modern trade finance. This evolution aligns with the government’s vision to position Mauritius as a leading financial and trade services hub.

By leveraging these strengths, Mauritius has the potential to diversify its financial services sector, generate employment, and contribute to long-term economic growth through the development of a dynamic trade finance ecosystem.

What can Mauritius learn and adapt from Dubai’s model?

Mauritius can position itself as a premier trade finance hub by executing a coordinated national Trade Finance Development Strategy, drawing lessons from global leaders like Dubai. This strategy should align government, regulators, and private stakeholders around key initiatives: enhancing port, airport, and digital infrastructure; establishing a national trade digital platform; and creating warehousing and fintech-enabled systems for trade documentation and finance.

A dedicated trade finance zone – similar to Dubai’s DIFC – could provide a specialized regulatory framework, independent dispute resolution, and business-friendly conditions to attract global players. Building on Mauritius’ existing financial ecosystem, tailored licenses and incentives for trade finance institutions, fintechs and insurers will enhance competitiveness, while strengthening the sandbox environment can foster innovation in supply chain finance and blockchain-based trade tools.

Offering comprehensive logistics, banking, and legal services for cross-border transactions will make the country a preferred trade finance gateway. Strengthening the regulatory framework to align with international best practices, mirroring the credibility of Dubai’s DFSA, will boost investor confidence.

In parallel, Mauritius should invest in specialized talent and financial education in trade finance, fintech, and risk management, ensuring long-term capability. A targeted global campaign promoting Mauritius as a reliable, bilingual (English-French), and innovation-driven trade finance destination will reinforce its position on the global stage.

What about the size of the total market for Trade Finance in Mauritius?

The Africa-Asia trade will continue to increase significantly, and is expected to be over $1 trillion by 2030. Mauritius can become a documentation and financial hub for part of the trade. Further, African importers often seek funding over 180 days under LCs, which many banks in exporting countries do not accept due to their respective Central Bank restrictions. These solutions can be provided through some specialized trade finance institutions and funds which operate in Africa. Mauritius can also play a role in warehouse receipt finance and structured commodity finance.