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Cobase for Shipping and Maritime Companies

Cobase gives shipping and maritime companies one centralized platform to manage bank connectivity, cash visibility and payments across vessels, legal entities, currencies and international banking relationships.

By bringing bank accounts, balances, transactions and payment processes together, finance and treasury teams can reduce reliance on separate bank portals, improve control over liquidity and establish consistent financial processes across the group.

Whether your organization manages a fleet of vessels, operates through individual ship-owning entities or combines shipping, chartering and logistics activities, Cobase provides the visibility and connectivity needed to manage a complex and international banking landscape.

cash management reporting and dashboarding

Cash visibility

Gain a complete view of cash across vessels and entities

Shipping groups frequently operate through complex legal structures in which individual vessels are held in separate ship-owning entities or special-purpose vehicles.

Each entity may have its own bank accounts, currencies, financing arrangements and operational cash requirements. Without centralized visibility, finance teams must collect balances and transactions from multiple bank portals before they can determine the group’s overall liquidity position.

Cobase consolidates banking information across vessels, entities, banks and countries, providing finance and treasury teams with one consistent view of cash across the organization.

Suggested section visual: centralized cash dashboard showing balances by vessel, ship-owning entity, bank, region and currency.

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UserGroups
Group-wide cash visibility

Consolidate balances and transaction information from multiple banks into one platform. Central finance and treasury teams can monitor liquidity across holding companies, management entities and individual vessel-owning companies without switching between bank portals. 

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Vessel and entity-level reporting

Organize bank accounts and cash positions by vessel, legal entity, fleet, geography or business unit. This makes it easier to understand where cash is available and which vessels or entities may require additional funding. 

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Multi-currency oversight

Monitor balances and transactions across the currencies used for charter income, port expenses, fuel purchases, payroll, financing and supplier payments. Centralized visibility helps finance teams manage foreign-currency exposure and upcoming liquidity requirements.

Reporting
Automated bank reporting

Automatically collect bank statements, balances and transaction data from connected banks. This reduces manual downloads and spreadsheet consolidation while giving finance teams access to more timely banking information. 

 

Payment control

Standardize payments across global operations

Shipping companies process a wide range of international payments, including bunker purchases, port charges, agency fees, vessel maintenance, insurance, crew payroll, financing obligations and supplier invoices.

These payments may originate from different systems, entities and regional finance teams. When each bank, vessel or office follows a separate process, it becomes difficult to maintain consistent approval controls and group-wide payment visibility.

Cobase centralizes payment initiation, approval and transmission while allowing local teams to operate within clearly defined permissions and responsibilities.

Suggested section visual: payment workflow showing vessel management systems, ERP platforms and regional finance teams submitting payments through Cobase to global banks.

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SmartWorkFlow
Centralized payment workflows

Bring payments from different entities, finance systems and banking relationships into one controlled process. This creates greater consistency across the group and reduces dependence on separate bank portals and local payment procedures. 

PaymentTrack
Secure payment approvals

Configure approval workflows based on legal entity, bank account, payment amount or user responsibility. This helps shipping groups enforce consistent authorization policies while allowing relevant local or vessel-management teams to remain involved. 

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ERP and finance-system integration

Transfer payment files from your ERP, accounting or vessel-management systems to Cobase through standardized and secure interfaces. Cobase validates and routes payments to the relevant bank through the required connectivity channel. 

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Complete payment visibility

Monitor whether payments have been received, validated, approved, transmitted, accepted or rejected. Centralized status information helps finance teams investigate issues without checking individual banking environments. 

Scalable financial infrastructure

Support fleet growth and changing ownership structures

Shipping groups regularly establish new ship-owning entities, acquire or dispose of vessels, refinance assets and enter new markets.

Each change can require new bank accounts, users, payment workflows and reporting processes. Managing these changes through separate bank portals and point-to-point integrations creates significant administrative and technical work.

Cobase provides a scalable banking infrastructure that allows organizations to add vessels, entities, accounts and banking relationships within one standardized environment.

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Treasury oversight

Improve liquidity decisions across the fleet

Shipping companies must manage volatile operating costs, financing obligations and fluctuating cash flows. Charter revenues, bunker costs, port expenses, maintenance requirements and vessel acquisitions can all have a significant impact on short-term liquidity.

Reliable and timely banking information is essential for determining where cash is available, which entities require funding and how liquidity should be allocated across the group.

Cobase brings actual bank data together with treasury processes, giving finance teams a stronger foundation for liquidity management and decision-making.

Suggested section visual: treasury dashboard combining current balances, expected charter income, operational expenses and debt-service obligations.

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SmartWorkFlow
Cash-position monitoring

Use centralized bank information to establish a reliable daily cash position across vessels and entities. Finance teams can identify available cash, funding requirements and unusual account movements more efficiently. 

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Liquidity forecasting

Combine actual balances with expected charter income, supplier payments, financing obligations, crew costs and planned vessel expenditure.

This helps treasury teams anticipate future liquidity requirements and take action before funding gaps arise.

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Intercompany visibility

Monitor cash transfers and funding flows between holding companies, management entities and ship-owning companies.

Greater visibility supports more efficient internal funding and reduces the risk of cash remaining unused in one part of the group while another entity requires financing.

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Management and lender reporting

Create consistent reporting across banks, vessels, entities and currencies. Centralized data reduces the time required to prepare liquidity reports for management, shareholders, lenders and other stakeholders.

 

 

Financial control

Strengthen control across decentralized banking operations

Shipping groups often combine centralized treasury oversight with decentralized operational responsibilities.

Local offices, vessel managers and finance teams may require access to specific accounts or payment processes, while group treasury needs visibility and control across the entire organization.

Cobase allows organizations to define clear responsibilities, permissions and approval structures within one central platform.

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SmartWorkFlow
Role-based access

Give users access only to the entities, accounts and functions relevant to their responsibilities. Central treasury can maintain group-wide oversight while local teams work within clearly defined boundaries. 

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Consistent authorization policies

 Apply standardized approval requirements across banks and entities. This reduces dependency on the different user and authorization structures maintained within individual bank portals. 

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Central audit trail

Maintain a clear record of payment actions, approvals and administrative changes. This supports internal control, audit requirements and investigation of individual transactions. 

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Reduced operational dependency

Centralize banking processes and information so they are less dependent on individual users, local system knowledge or access to specific bank portals. 

Frequently asked questions

Can Cobase support a separate legal entity for every vessel?

Yes. Cobase can support shipping groups with large numbers of ship-owning entities, subsidiaries and special-purpose vehicles.

Accounts, balances, transactions and user access can be organized by vessel, legal entity, fleet, geography or business unit.

Can we connect banks across multiple countries?

Yes. Cobase supports connectivity with banks in different countries through methods including APIs, host-to-host connections, SFTP, EBICS and SWIFT, depending on the capabilities and requirements of each bank.

This allows international shipping groups to centralize their banking information even when accounts remain with local or regional banks.

Can Cobase manage payments from multiple entities?

Yes. Cobase can centralize payment initiation, approval and transmission across multiple entities, accounts and banks.

Approval workflows and user permissions can be configured based on the organization’s legal and operational structure.

Does Cobase replace our ERP or vessel-management system?

No. Cobase complements your existing ERP, accounting and vessel-management systems.

These systems can remain the primary environments for financial administration, invoice processing and payment preparation, while Cobase provides centralized bank connectivity, payment workflows and banking information.

Can Cobase support multiple ERP and accounting systems?

Yes. Cobase can receive payment files and deliver bank statements and statuses to multiple financial systems.

This is particularly valuable for shipping groups where subsidiaries, regional offices or acquired businesses use different ERP or accounting environments.

Can local offices continue to manage their own entities?

 Yes. Role-based access allows local finance teams to work with designated entities and accounts, while central treasury maintains broader group-level visibility and control. 

Can Cobase support different payment currencies?

Yes. Cobase supports international and multi-currency payment processes, subject to the capabilities of the connected banks and the payment formats being used.

Finance teams can manage payments across multiple currencies from one centralized environment.

Can Cobase help when a new vessel is acquired?

Yes. The new ship-owning entity, bank accounts, users and payment workflows can be added to the existing Cobase environment.

This allows the vessel to follow standardized banking, reporting and approval processes without requiring a separate banking infrastructure.

Can Cobase provide intraday bank information?

Cobase can collect intraday balances and transaction information where these services are provided by the connected bank.

The availability and frequency of intraday information depend on the bank, account and connectivity method.

Interested?

Manage all your bank accounts centrally with Cobase

Simplify your cash management and save valuable time. One platform, complete control over all your financial flows.
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