As over 60% of Swiss companies export goods and services abroad, knowing who they’re doing business with becomes critical. A missed payment or a supplier failure can quickly disrupt operations and strain financial resources. Recognizing these challenges, Coface has been at the forefront of providing comprehensive business information services tailored for the Swiss market. By delivering in-depth analyses of financial health and payment behaviors, Coface empowers Swiss businesses to make informed decisions, ensuring stability and fostering growth.
The information advantage our clients need
Business information becomes indispensable when navigating the uncertainties of international commerce. For Swiss companies, leveraging accurate and timely data is crucial in several scenarios:
Selecting Reliable Suppliers: Ensuring a stable supply chain is paramount. By evaluating the financial solidity and operational reliability of potential suppliers, businesses can mitigate risks associated with delays or disruptions.
Identifying Business Opportunities: Comprehensive market analyses enable companies to pinpoint lucrative opportunities, understand competitive landscapes, and tailor strategies accordingly.
Validating Investment Projects: Before committing resources, assessing the financial viability and potential returns of investment projects ensures alignment with long-term business objectives.
Assessing Customer Risks: Evaluating the creditworthiness and payment histories of clients helps in setting appropriate credit terms and avoiding potential defaults.
Detecting Early Signs of Financial Distress: Monitoring key financial indicators allows for the early identification of potential issues, enabling proactive measures to safeguard business interests.
How we generate business information
Coface's methodology is rooted in a consistent global approach, ensuring that businesses receive reliable and comparable data across markets. Our experts analyze a blend of quantitative financial metrics and qualitative insights, drawing from over a decade of accumulated business activity data. This unified risk model provides a robust foundation for tracking and assessing company performance over time.
◼ A systematic approach
Data quality is central to our operations. By prioritizing accurate and comprehensive data collection, we aim to anticipate risks and prevent complications in business dealings. When evaluating potential risks associated with specific deals, our commitment is to understand all implications based on solid data sets.
COLLECT: company details and financial information
We engage directly with businesses to gather first-hand information, ensuring our assessments are both current and precise. This includes detailed financial statements such as balance sheets, income statements, and cash flow analyses. Additionally, we collaborate with local partners worldwide to obtain qualitative insights, enriching our understanding of each company's financial standing.
CLEAN: ensuring data compliance and currency
Maintaining up-to-date and compliant data is essential. Our processes involve rigorous validation checks and regular updates to ensure that the information we provide reflects the most current financial realities of businesses.
ANALYZE: financial health and risk assessment
Each company is evaluated individually, considering its unique circumstances. Even amidst shifting macroeconomic conditions, we discern whether a business is directly impacted before adjusting our assessments. This meticulous approach ensures fair and accurate evaluations, distinguishing between broad market trends and company-specific factors.
ENRICH: payment incidents and business history
Our team of 600 analysts continuously monitors businesses and transactions, compiling a comprehensive database of payment behaviors and historical performance. By integrating trusted sources, we detect early signals of financial instability, enabling timely interventions and informed decision-making.
Should information about a potential client or supplier be lacking, we initiate specific search requests to commence a thorough analysis, ensuring no inquiry remains unaddressed.
◼ Key performance indicators (KPIs)
Coface provides critical KPIs that are most sought after by our clients for monitoring client or supplier risks:
Current score and history: we predict the probability of default over 12 months using a standardized 0–10 score, enabling consistent global assessments. For companies active over 24 months, we often provide risk history to reveal trends not always visible in recent documents.
Credit opinion: we provide recommended credit limits in local currencies, considering current financial performance, historical data, future forecasts, and insurance claim records.
Late payment index: we monitor and report signs of late payments based on verified data sources. If available, this index highlights a company’s recent payment behavior, helping you identify potential financial stress not always reflected in formal credit reports.
How we distribute business information
Our distribution channels are designed for efficiency and accessibility, ensuring that clients receive timely updates:
Self-service via online tool
Clients can access our services through a subscription model, starting at CHF 1,500 per year. This self-service platform offers a certain amount of credits, with pricing adjusted based on usage and the complexity of information retrieval. Notably, there are no implementation costs, allowing for immediate utilization.
API integration into CRM systems
For seamless integration, our API tool allows businesses to incorporate our risk management insights directly into their CRM systems, such as SAP or Salesforce. This synchronization occurs regularly throughout the day. While native connections incur no implementation costs, other systems may require additional resources for integration.
Business information for Switzerland: why it matters locally
In Switzerland, many SMEs lack the extensive teams or specialized knowledge to conduct thorough financial analyses, especially concerning international partners. This is when Business Information solutions play a pivotal role.
◼ Supporting export activities
Switzerland's export-oriented economy means that many companies engage with clients and suppliers abroad. Coface Switzerland assists these businesses by providing essential information, enabling them to assess partners for both one-off transactions and long-term relationships.
◼ Enhancing transparency
In scenarios where partners are reluctant to disclose financial information, Coface's involvement can encourage transparency. Regular information requests, under the principle of “no information, no transaction," often prompt companies to share necessary data, fostering trust and openness.
◼ Evaluating opportunity costs
With the average export invoice ranging between CHF 60,000 and CHF 70,000, investing in a business information report is a minimal expense relative to potential losses. While not as comprehensive as insurance, these reports provide valuable insights into a partner's financial health.
◼ Maintaining discretion
A majority of Swiss clients prefer to assess partners discreetly, avoiding direct inquiries that might strain relationships. By utilizing Coface's services, they can obtain necessary information through a third party, preserving the integrity of their business interactions.
Expanding our Swiss team to better serve you
To enhance our service delivery across Switzerland, Coface is strengthening its team. Joining our existing experts, we welcome three new colleagues:
David Fekete – Head of Sales: David Fekete joined Coface in Lausanne after ten years in Zurich. With over 20 years of international sales experience across France, Poland, Germany, and Switzerland, he has worked in banking, industry, and consumer goods. He now leads the Coface Business Information team, supporting SMEs and multinational clients in Switzerland.
Rébecca Viguié – Sales Executive: Rébecca Viguié, French-Swiss and originally from Guadeloupe, has lived in Switzerland since 2008. She has nearly ten years of experience in financial consulting and insurance, with previous roles at OVB, Creditreform, and Allianz. At Coface, she supports mid-sized businesses in French-speaking Switzerland in taking avantage of Coface Business Information insights.
Matthew Damal – Sales Executive: Based in Zurich, Matthew Damal works with SMEs in the German-speaking part of Switzerland on Business Information topics. He brings experience from B2B sales in the tech sector, with previous roles at Xelon AG and e3 AG, as well as a banking background at Crédit Agricole and the Geneva Cantonal Bank. He is fluent in French, English, and German.
You want to ensure your business decisions are backed by reliable information? Contact Coface Switzerland today to learn how our business information services can support your growth and stability in the global market.