Collaborative supply chain finance based on transaction cost theory: a multiple case study in the POF scenario

In traditional supply chains, downstream distributors of core companies often face significant cash pressure and market uncertainty. In this case, purchase order finance (POF), as an important form of supply chain finance (SCF), plays a vital role in addressing these challenges by providing loan support to financially constrained companies during the ordering stage. To gain more empirical insights into SFC in the POF scenario, this study conducts an in-depth case analysis of the collaborative POF services between three banks and one Chinese core manufacturing enterprise. Based on the results, we identified the collaborative details (goal congruence, information sharing, resource sharing, and synchronised decision-making) and the impacts of the digital investment of banks. The main conclusions of this study have certain reference values for banks in establishing digital capabilities and for core companies in making SCF-related decisions.