Ecic panel of professional service providers for SA eximbank establishment – 5-Year as-and-when contract

The RFP seeks to appoint a panel of professional service providers for 5 years to support the establishment of the SA Eximbank. Services include: review of initial business case, independent financial modelling, financial advisory, capital raising, project management, and bank establishment specialist. The SA Eximbank will be funded by both public and private capital. Bidders can bid as corporate or individuals. Must indicate bidding areas (Annexure B).

Closing date: 15 October 2026 at 11:00 (SAST)

Enquiries deadline: 07 October 2026 (questions must be emailed to [email protected])

Response to enquiries published: on or before 09 October 2026

SCM contact:

• Name: Mr. S Mayekiso
• Email: [email protected]
• Address: Byls Bridge Office Park, Building 9, Fourth Floor, 11 Byls Bridge Boulevard, Highveld Extension 73, Centurion, 0157

Technical enquiries:

• Email: [email protected]

Submission address: [email protected] (email submission only)

Method: email PDF submission to [email protected]. Closing time: 11:00 (SAST) on 15 October 2026.

Mandatory returnable documents:

• Annexure A: Protection of Personal Information – consent and POPIA compliance.
• Annexure B: Areas bidding for – bidder must indicate which scope area(s) they bid for. Bids without this indication will not be evaluated.
• SBD 1 (Invitation to Bid): bidder and contact details, signed as the offer cover page.
• SBD 4 (Declaration of Interest): discloses whether any director or shareholder is employed by the state or connected to anyone at ECIC.
• Company Profile with detailed CVs of all Key Personnel.
• Proof of qualifications (NQF certificates) for Key Personnel.
• Proof of similar assignments or projects for each scope area bid.

Disqualification risks:

• Failure to indicate bidding areas (Annexure B).
• Failure to meet minimum functional threshold (75.00 points).
• Failure to submit by closing time.
• Inconsistencies found during due diligence or site inspection.
• False declarations in SBD 4 or any returnable document.

Evaluation is phased:

• Phase One: Compliance – proposal must align with bid requirements in all material respects; non-alignment leads to disqualification.
• Phase Two: Pre-qualification – bidder must meet minimum requirements: company in existence ≥ 5 years (or consultancy ≥ 5 years or individuals > 10 years' experience); team leader must have NQF 8 or higher in relevant field and ≥ 10 years' experience; proof of similar assignments required per scope area. Failure to meet any of these disqualifies.
• Phase Three: Functional (desktop) – minimum score of 75.00 out of 100 points required to proceed. Scoring uses factor scores 0–5 (0=Poor, 5=Excellent) multiplied by applicable points.
• Phase Four: Objective criteria – as detailed in paragraph 15.

Functional evaluation criteria per area (e.g., Review of Initial Business Case, Independent Financial Modelling, Financial Advisory, Capital Raising, Project Management, Bank Establishment): experience and qualifications of key personnel, with sub-points as per Tables 1–6. Minimum qualifying score: 75.00 points.

Scope areas (bid for one or more; must indicate which in Annexure B):

1. Review of Initial Business Case for establishment of SA Eximbank – review existing work, identify gaps, institutional analysis, recommendations, legislative/policy roadmap.
2. Independent Financial Modelling – construct financial models for financing institution, including revenue, cost, capital, funding structure, cash flow, NPV/IRR, scenario and sensitivity analysis.
3. Financial Advisory – complex financial analyses, business modelling, financial modelling of financing institution; support with business analysts, actuarial science, data science, statistics.
4. Capital Raising – resource mobilisation, raising equity and debt funding from government and private sector (sovereign wealth funds, commercial banks, institutional investors, etc.); design capital structure aligned to shareholding.
5. Project Management Officer – manage phased implementation (Design and Institutional Architecture; Establishment and Operational Readiness; Launch Support); oversee workstreams, stakeholder coordination, risk mitigation.
6. Bank Establishment Specialist – regulatory liaison, financial architecture, technology and payment rails, cybersecurity, 3–5 year business plans, treasury and liquidity.

Key personnel minimum requirements:

• Project lead/facilitator: NQF 8 or higher in economics/finance/development/accounting or similar; minimum 10 years' experience.
• Team members: at least 10 years' experience in respective areas.
• Service provider must have been in existence for minimum 5 years (or consultancy 5 years, or individuals >10 years' experience).
• Provide proof of similar assignments/projects for each scope area bid.

Phased approach: Design and Institutional Architecture; Establishment and Operational Readiness; Launch Support. Progression between phases subject to formal approval by ECIC Board. Methodology must include: consolidation of prior work, gap analysis, institutional analysis, recommendations, legal roadmap, financial modelling. Project management to oversee workstreams, manage stakeholders, monitor progress, mitigate risks, ensure alignment with national policy and best practice.

Key Personnel: minimum NQF 8 qualification for project lead/facilitator (in economics/finance/development/accounting or similar). Team members must have at least 10 years' experience in respective scope areas. Service provider must have been in existence for at least 5 years (or consultancy 5 years, or individuals >10 years' experience). Provide proof of similar assignments/projects for each scope area bid. CVs must detail technical expertise in business case review, financial modelling, financial advisory, capital raising, project management, banking establishment.

No specific pricing schedule provided in RFP. Panel members will be requested to submit quotations on specific cases (RFQ). Pricing will be a factor in allocating work on the panel. Bidders must be able to provide comprehensive proposals including quotations when required.

No bid security, bond, or guarantee amounts specified.

Panel members are not guaranteed work; assignments allocated on competitive RFQ basis.

Pricing required when quotations are requested on specific cases by ECIC.

B-BBEE minimum level: 8 (as stated in paragraph 9).

CSD registration required (standard SBD requirements).

Tax compliance status must be valid.

Proof of qualifications (NQF certificates) for key personnel.

Proof of similar assignments/projects.

SBD 4 (Declaration of Interest) – mandatory disclosure.

SBD 9 (Certificate of Independent Bid Determination) – no collusion, independent pricing.

POPIA compliance (Annexure A).

Contract duration: 5 years, on an as-and-when-required basis. Panel members are not guaranteed work; assignments allocated via competitive RFQ. Contract may be terminated by ECIC with not less than 30 days' written notice for reasonable grounds (e.g., unsatisfactory performance, departure of key personnel, governance/ownership issues, reputational risks). Ongoing matters at contract expiry may be concluded under original terms.

Due diligence/site inspection may be conducted at ECIC's discretion (remotely or on-site). If discrepancies found between bid information and actual premises, bidder may be disqualified.

No telephonic or other communication with any ECIC staff other than the named contact permitted. All enquiries must be in writing to [email protected].

Bidders not indicating bidding areas will not be evaluated.

Bidders must indicate years of experience for each team member and provide CVs detailing technical expertise. Provide proof of similar assignments. Key personnel must have minimum NQF 8 qualification for project lead, 10 years' experience for team, and service provider must be in existence for 5 years (or consultancy 5 years, or individuals >10 years' experience).

Functional evaluation criteria per scope area include: bidder's experience (e.g., reviewing business cases, financial modelling, capital raising) and qualifications of key personnel (e.g., NQF 8 or higher). Points are allocated per sub-criteria, rated on factor scores 0–5, with total points per area. Minimum 75.00 points required to be listed on panel. Examples of sub-criteria: bidder's demonstrated experience in reviewing business cases of financing institutions (50 points); team leader's NQF 8 or higher qualification (50 points); business analyst experience in business analysis, actuarial science, development finance, data science, statistics, or financial modelling (up to 25 points per expert); additional personnel with proposal writing or business modelling experience (25 points); team leader with economics/finance/development finance/accounting qualification and capital raising/resource mobilisation (50 points); capital raising experience in equity and debt funding (100 points); project management experience for establishment of financing institution (50 points); banking establishment specialist with NQF 8 or higher and regulatory/compliance expertise (50 points).