Imagine Moving Containers Without Paying Deposits: How VCS Solves East Africa's Biggest Cash Flow Problem

If you've ever worked in clearing and forwarding in East Africa, you know this feeling intimately.

A new shipment is arriving. The goods are sold. The buyer is waiting. Everything is moving — until you hit the deposit requirement. Suddenly, you're calculating: do I have enough liquidity? Do I need to borrow? How long will it take to get this money back after the container is returned?

This friction is so common that most logistics professionals have simply accepted it as part of the job. But it's not inevitable. And it's costing the industry far more than it should.

The Problem: Container Deposits as a Cash Flow Trap

Let's be precise about what a container deposit does. When a shipping line releases a container, they require a financial guarantee that the container will be returned in good condition. Historically, this has taken the form of a cash deposit — real money, paid upfront, held until the container is returned.

On paper, this is logical. In practice, it creates several serious problems:

Problem 1: Capital is frozen when businesses need it most — at the point of importing, when cash is already being spent on goods, duties, and logistics costs.

Problem 2: SMEs with limited working capital are disproportionately penalised. Large operators can absorb deposit demands; small businesses often cannot.

Problem 3: Return timelines are unpredictable. Even after a container is returned, getting the deposit back can take days or weeks — creating a liquidity gap that disrupts cash flow planning.

Problem 4: Missed opportunities. When capital is frozen, businesses can't respond to new orders, new contracts, or new market opportunities.

The Solution: The Viaservice Container Solution (VCS)

VCS was designed to solve exactly this problem — not by asking shipping lines to accept more risk, but by replacing cash deposits with a smarter financial instrument.

"The deposit still exists in principle — the security the shipping line needs is still provided. It's just no longer the importer's frozen cash that provides it."

The Results Speak for Themselves

Since launching VCS in East Africa in 2020, the impact has been measurable and significant:

$35M+in working capital returned to East African businesses

70% market penetration among licensed C&F agents in Tanzania

8 major shipping line partnerships across 12 countries

Who Should Be Using VCS?

If you are a clearing and forwarding agent, importer, or freight forwarder operating in East Africa and you are currently paying cash deposits to release containers — VCS was built for you.

It doesn't matter whether you're moving 5 containers a month or 500. The principle is the same: your working capital should be working for your business, not sitting frozen in a deposit account.

Because the easier trade flows, the faster everyone grows. And this is how we make it flow.

Because the easier trade flows, the faster everyone grows.

Unlocking growth, together.

🔗 Get started: www.viaservice.ch/service