A bibliometric analysis was conducted on the top documents, authors, sources, and affiliations; cluster and content analyses of the most influential papers published in Scopus to discover the main streams and themes in SCF. The results of the analysis show that SCF is an interdisciplinary research area that intersects sustainability, management, mathematical models, economics, etc. The findings are significant as they can help managers focus on technological advancements, supply chain flexibility tactics, and the aptitude of organisations for continued success and alignment with Industry 4.0. Supply Chain Finance as an emergent and currently, one of the most viable and plausible financing procedural instruments is not a new conceptual framework. It has been widely noted and acclaimed as an essential aspect of supply chain management and trade finance. The global economic crises have necessitated the urgent consideration and eventual adoption of Supply Chain Finance (SCF).

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  • The flow of financial resources in supply chains is increasingly drawing the centre of attention.
  • The interest in supply chain finance rose after the financial crisis when the bank loans declined considerably, as the need for better management and the optimisation of working capital became obvious.
  • The digitalisation of supply chain finance (SCF) is a relatively new and fast-growing discipline in business and management.
  • All authors have contributed equally in all stages and sections of this research.
  • The findings are significant as they can help managers focus on technological advancements, supply chain flexibility tactics, and the aptitude of organisations for continued success and alignment with Industry 4.0.
  • The global economic crises have necessitated the urgent consideration and eventual adoption of Supply Chain Finance (SCF).

This article is unique, as it investigates the factors affecting supply chains according to the existing literature. Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law. Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. All authors have contributed equally in all stages and sections of this research.

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Earlier studies on supply chains have focussed on aligning product/services and information A Contribution to the SCF Literature flows while neglecting the financial aspects. Due to this, in recent times, importance has been given to align financial flows with the other components of the supply chain. The interest in supply chain finance rose after the financial crisis when the bank loans declined considerably, as the need for better management and the optimisation of working capital became obvious. This paper reviews the articles on supply chain finance based on three themes—factors, outcomes, and solutions—while at the same time providing directions for future research on supply chain finance.

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SCF is noted for its capability to collaborate and coordinate trade partners and procedures in order to increase Trade transparency, the shift from paper-laden business documentation to comprehensive sophisticated automation process of concise detailed information exchange and the ultimate dematerialization of the entire supply chain process. The processes involved in a thoroughly comprehensive SCF scheme also reduces trading costs and risks shouldered by all the parties involved in the process. This study attempts to delineate and define the not so obvious but diverse trading efficiencies, value enhancement enjoyed by the users of SCF and the enormous improvement in working capital accessibility and maximization afforded by SCF in the entire supply chain process. It also seeks to highlight some of the major challenges of the SCF system thereby prescribing and providing working innovative but compelling solutions to streamline and ensure the viability and the instrumentation of SCF mechanisms and their capabilities of eradicating trade finance problems faced by various trade partners and companies. This is, by far, a brilliant innovative method of leveraging working capital accessibility and the substantial enhancement of credit ratings and values of the various companies using the SCF system to optimize trade efficiency, predictability and ultimately profitability.

  • As a consequence new tasks at the intersection of finance and logistics/supply chain management open new business areas for banks as well as financial and logistics service providers.
  • The Visualisation of Similarities (VOSviewer) software was employed to perform a co-occurrence analysis of all publication trends, leading authors, and keywords.
  • Earlier studies on supply chains have focussed on aligning product/services and information flows while neglecting the financial aspects.
  • In the current highly competitive and fast-changing business environment, in which the optimisation of all resources matters, creating an efficient supply chain is crucial.
  • In order to improve the collaborative cash cycle and working capital, SCF aims to facilitate the reduction of financial risks in a supply chain.
  • This research has particular relevance in the light of the disruptions that the global credit crunch has brought to global financial systems, and the changes that are likely as responses to these disruptions.

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The digitalisation of supply chain finance (SCF) is a relatively new and fast-growing discipline in business and management. It helps reduce financial risk in supply chains and integrates the cash-to-cash cycle and working capital. Given the importance of supply chain digitalisation in this digital era, this study provides an analysis of the extant literature on digitalisation and SCF published in the last 82 (1941–2023) using scientometrics and bibliometric analyses. The Visualisation of Similarities (VOSviewer) software was employed to perform a co-occurrence analysis of all publication trends, leading authors, and keywords.

This paper can be understood as a first step enabling executives to look behind the Supply Chain Finance (SCF) approach. Supply chain finance (SCF) deals with the management of financial flows throughout the supply chain. In order to improve the collaborative cash cycle and working capital, SCF aims to facilitate the reduction of financial risks in a supply chain. To do this, SCF involves the coordination of supply chain actors, SCF instruments and supply chain processes. In the current highly competitive and fast-changing business environment, in which the optimisation of all resources matters, creating an efficient supply chain is crucial.

This paper explores current models and practice regarding the dynamics of financial flows along global supply networks. Based on data collected from technology and service providers that focus on such issues along global supply networks, the paper identifies and discusses requirements for improved solutions to supply chain finance challenges. This research has particular relevance in the light of the disruptions that the global credit crunch has brought to global financial systems, and the changes that are likely as responses to these disruptions. The flow of financial resources in supply chains is increasingly drawing the centre of attention. Even the task of supply chain managers begins with the financing and capital budgeting decisions of value creation relevant investments and ends only after the payment from the customer is received. As a consequence new tasks at the intersection of finance and logistics/supply chain management open new business areas for banks as well as financial and logistics service providers.