EXIM (Export-Import Bank of the United States)
EXIM (the Export-Import Bank of the United States) is the official export credit agency of the United States: an independent Executive Branch agency, established by executive order in 1934 and operating under the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945, as amended, with a mission of supporting American jobs by facilitating the export of US goods and services. When private sector lenders are unable or unwilling to provide financing, EXIM fills the gap so US exporters can compete for foreign sales.
EXIM is backed by the full faith and credit of the United States and assumes credit and country risks that the private sector declines. Its charter requires that authorised transactions demonstrate a reasonable assurance of repayment. Authority to conduct new business has been extended by statute; the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020 (P.L. 116-94) extends that authority through 31 December 2026.
How EXIM is used on bank export finance desks
Bank EF desks encounter EXIM as guarantor, insurer or direct lender on US content exports. Common product families include export credit insurance against commercial and political non-payment, working capital loan guarantees that support borrowing against export-related assets, and buyer support for foreign purchasers of US goods and services, including project and structured finance for larger capital equipment, energy and infrastructure packages.
In medium- and long-term business subject to the OECD Arrangement, EXIM exposure fees are set by reference to OECD minimum premium rules. Official EXIM guidance explains how percentage of cover, product quality (conditional insurance versus unconditional guarantee or loan), drawdown and repayment horizons, and fee financing choices feed the exposure fee. Short-term products fall outside the Arrangement's repayment-term threshold of two years or more.
Institutional scope and financing tools
EXIM's public solutions map to three exporter problems: protecting against buyer non-payment, unlocking working capital against export-related assets, and enabling credit terms or buyer finance so foreign customers can purchase from the United States. Buyer-facing support can take the form of guarantees or direct loans that sit alongside commercial bank funding in buyer credit style structures.
Because EXIM is a US government agency acting as ECA, documentation, content rules and Board authorisations are US specific even when the economic structure resembles peer ECA facilities. Desks therefore separate EXIM eligibility and US content tests from co-financings involving other ECAs or multilaterals on the same project.
Pricing, cover quality and Arrangement alignment
For Arrangement-covered medium- and long-term transactions, EXIM describes an OECD norm of 95% cover, while its own normal coverage for medium- and long-term insurance, guarantees and loans is 100%, with a fee surcharge for the additional cover. Guarantees and direct loans are priced as above-standard-quality products relative to conditional insurance.
EXIM's exposure fee is its implementation of the ECA premium: it is constrained by OECD minimum premium rates for sovereign and non-sovereign buyers, with market benchmark pricing based on buyer credit risk for high-income OECD and Euro Area obligors. Political-risk-only cover is treated as a distinct pricing case under EXIM's fee guidance.