SINGAPORE (THE BUSINESS TIMES) - DBS Bank has completed the first trade financing transaction on Singapore's Networked Trade Platform (NTP), the lender said in a press statement on Thursday (Feb 6).

The NTP, launched by the government in September 2018, is a platform which digitises paperwork to make government certification and third-party commercial services simpler.

The DBS trade relates to a $3.5 million letter of credit transaction for a trade of Audi cars between Audi Singapore and Audi's local distributor, Premium Automobiles.

Previously, car importers such as Audi have to present physically paper-based trade documents to complete a letter of credit transaction, said DBS.

Audi and Premium Automobiles can now submit bank applications and send and receive trade documents online through the NTP.

DBS said this shortens trade financing processing to under one working day, from about a week previously.

As trade documents are uploaded onto the NTP, all trade participants can receive real-time updates on the progress of their transaction, enabling them to better plan their working capital needs, added DBS.

DBS, Audi and Premium Automobiles are working on a second NTP trade valued at $2.8 million.

DBS shares were up $0.13 or 0.5 per cent to $25.58 as at 9.09am on Thursday.