Level of Advertisement by Commercial Banks on Utilisation of International Trade Finance Products by Business Customers in Kenya.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess the role played by commercial banks in offering international trade finance products to businesses including Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Kenya. The objective was to determine the level of Advertisement by Commercial Banks on utilisation of International Trade finance products by business customers in Kenya to serve the SMEs. A sample of 12 commercial banks was targeted and picked through a stratified random sampling method. A survey was done and data collected through questionnaires delivered through email which achieved a 100% response rate. The respondents were the branch managers, the business bankers and customer service staff in the respective selected branches of the 12 commercial banks. The study findings indicated that a significant proportion ( 86%) of the respondents are not aware of advertisements done by their banks to encourage usage of international trade finance products and recommended further research on the key success factors that Kenyan Banks should adopt to increase utilization of international trade finance products to businesses especially among the Kenyan SMEs.

Keywords: Advertisement, Commercial Banks, International Trade Finance