Coface

What Coface does

Coface is a French public limited company founded in 1946 and listed on Euronext Paris (ticker CFACY), headquartered in Bois-Colombes, France. The company is the third-largest global trade credit insurer and operates in an oligopoly that controls 75% of the trade credit insurance market. Coface generated approximately €1.84 billion in turnover in 2025 and reported €223 million in net income (down from €261 million in 2024), with a Group SCR coverage ratio of 197% and an A (Excellent) AM Best Financial Strength Rating. It is the third-largest in a tight oligopoly of credit insurers and operates with capital backing from Arch Capital, which holds a 29.5% stake.

The company's core products are trade credit insurance, business information services, and debt collection, all aimed at mitigating non-payment risk (cited as contributing to 25% of business failures). Underlying these is a proprietary database of 70 million corporate datasets that informs underwriting decisions and feeds a growing business information offering; the business information unit is estimated to generate 4% of group revenues with 15% annual growth potential. Delivery is multi-channel: a direct enterprise sales force across approximately 100 countries, the CofaNet customer portal, a Broker Portal, a Business Information Portal, and a public Coface API Portal (developers.coface.com) for software integration.

Coface serves roughly 100,000 clients across nearly 200 markets, with €725 billion of exposure under management and a 94.8% client retention rate as of Q1 2026. The company's underwriting performance is a notable differentiator, with a combined ratio of 71.9% versus competitors' 82.1%. Coface has pursued an aggressive data-focused M&A strategy, completing acquisitions of Rel8ed (January 2023, North America), Cedar Rose Group (July 2025, Middle East), and Novertur International SA (July 2025, Switzerland), and it issued a €300 million corporate bond in November 2023 to support strategic initiatives.

Name

Coface

Legal name

Compagnie Française d'Assurance pour le Commerce Extérieur

Website

https://coface.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

1946

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Coface is a global trade credit insurer founded in 1946, listed on Euronext Paris, serving 100,000 clients across nearly 200 markets with trade credit insurance, business information, and debt collection services built on a proprietary 70-million-record corporate database.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Trade Credit Insurance

NAICS

Insurance Carriers and Related Activities (524)

SIC

Services-Consumer Credit Reporting, Collection Agencies (7320)

akta.pro primary industry

Trade Credit Insurance Brokerage (FSAEADAL)

Keywords

• Trade credit insurance
• Business information services
• Debt collection services
• Credit risk management
• Commercial credit insurance

Headquarters

HQ city

Bois-colombes

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Trade Credit Insurance Premiums: Core revenue stream from trade credit insurance policies. Premiums are charged to businesses to protect against non-payment by their customers. The company generated approximately €1.84 billion in turnover in 2025 with 5,511 employees.
2. Business Information Services: Revenue from business reports, credit scores, credit opinions, sector and country assessments. Non-insurance activities showed strong growth with business information revenue up 11.8% in Q1 2026.
3. Debt Collection Services: Debt collection services where Coface experts collect trade receivables anywhere in the world. Non-insurance activities grew strongly (+9.2% to €43.9 million) with debt collection revenue up 31.6% in Q1 2026.
4. Bond Issuance: Financial activities including bond issuance; Coface SA issued a 300 million euro bond as part of its financial activities.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Coface provides trade credit insurance to protect businesses against the risk of customer non-payment, business information services including credit reports, scores, and country/sector risk assessments, and global debt collection services for recovering trade receivables. These offerings are delivered through underwriters, local offices in approximately 100 countries, and digital platforms including CofaNet, the Broker Portal, the Business Information portal, and the Coface API.

Product overview

Coface is a global credit insurance and business information group operating since 1946. The company offers three core products: Trade Credit Insurance (managing non-payment risk for businesses of all sizes), Business Information (credit reports, scores, and assessments for decision-making), and Debt Collection (global trade receivable recovery). These products are delivered through multiple platforms including CofaNet (customer portal), Broker Portal (for distribution partners), Business Information portal, and API Portal (for developer integrations). The company serves 100,000 clients across approximately 200 markets and has been expanding its data capabilities through strategic acquisitions including Rel8ed (2023), Novertur International SA (2025), and Cedar Rose Group (2025).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Trade Credit Insurance

Quantifiable outcome

• Combined ratio of 71.9% versus competitors' 82.1%
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Novertur International SAcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 July 2025Agreement to acquire Novertur International SA, a Swiss startup specializing in data management for Swiss companies, based in Lausanne. The acquisition aims to enhance Coface's Business Information services in Switzerland by leveraging Novertur's digital expertise and technological innovations.
• Cedar Rose GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 July 2025Acquisition of Cedar Rose Group, a business information provider in the Middle East, enhancing Coface's data capabilities in regions with limited information access. The acquisition aligns with Coface's strategic plan to focus on data excellence and strengthen offerings in credit insurance and business information services in the Middle East and Africa.
• Rel8edcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 January 2023Acquisition of North American data analytics boutique Rel8ed to enhance Coface's data capabilities and improve trade credit solutions. The acquisition expands Coface's database and analytics offerings, benefiting risk assessment and business information services. Rel8ed specializes in big data analysis from multiple sources.
• HowdenminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorHowden has partnered with Coface to offer trade credit insurance solutions to businesses seeking protection against customer defaults. This partnership expands distribution reach through insurance broker channels.
• Cisambiente ConfindustriaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoface developed the Cisambiente Confindustria ESG model together with the organization, demonstrating collaboration on sustainability and ESG frameworks in the Italian waste valorization and renewable energy sector.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Munich Re: Global reinsurer with a credit insurance franchise that competes both at the primary level (through subsidiaries) and as a reinsurer of Coface's own book.
• AIG: Global insurer with a multi-line trade credit insurance business alongside far larger P&C, life, and specialty operations; competes with Coface for large-enterprise credit insurance mandates.
• Zurich Insurance Group: Diversified global insurer that offers trade credit insurance as part of its commercial insurance portfolio, overlapping with Coface on multi-line accounts and broker-distributed business.
• S&P Global: Owns S&P Ratings and S&P Global Market Intelligence (including the former Bureau van Dijk), competing with Coface on corporate credit intelligence, analytics, and ESG/country risk assessments.
• Moody's Corporation: Operates Moody's Ratings and Moody's Analytics, both of which overlap with Coface's credit opinions, country/sector risk assessments, and business information offerings for institutional buyers.

Direct peers

• Allianz Trade (formerly Euler Hermes): The world's largest trade credit insurer and Coface's principal direct competitor, offering credit insurance, business information, and debt collection across similar geographies and customer segments.
• Atradius: Second-largest global trade credit insurer and head-to-head competitor with Coface, providing comparable trade credit insurance, surety, collections, and business information products to similar B2B exporters and domestic traders.
• Tokio Marine HCC: Specialty insurer with a dedicated trade credit insurance arm serving mid-market and enterprise exporters; competes directly with Coface on credit insurance underwriting and related risk services.
• Dun & Bradstreet: Global provider of business information, commercial credit reports, and data analytics; directly comparable to Coface's Business Information unit and increasingly relevant as Coface expands its BI and data monetization strategy.
• Creditsafe: Global commercial credit reporting and business intelligence provider offering credit scores, reports, and monitoring — directly competing with Coface's Business Information platform for SMB and mid-market customers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/coface
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@CofaceGroup
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/coface
• Facebookfacebook.com/114931078519424

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A10 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Coface