Magister Legum - LLM / Timely, adequate and affordable access to finance is pivotal to bolstering the participation of small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) in both domestic and international trade. Regrettably, despite their immense contributions to the economy, most SMEs in Nigeria and across Africa find it extremely challenging to access finance from banks and the stock market. As a result, they cannot fund their working capital and trade financing needs conveniently, and this undermines their growth and capacity to contribute even more to the economy. This situation has made it imperative to continue exploring alternative sources of finance that may be more accessible and align better with the peculiarities of SMEs.