French-speaking surety

What French-speaking surety does

Cautionnement romand, société coopérative, is a federally recognized Swiss surety cooperative constituted on July 18, 2007 under the Federal Law of October 6, 2006 on financial aid to guarantee organizations for SMEs. It consolidates the legacy cantonal surety cooperatives of Fribourg, Geneva, Neuchâtel, Valais, and Vaud, making it one of only four recognized guarantee organizations in Switzerland with an exclusive mandate over the French-speaking Romandie region. The cooperative's core product is a solidarity surety (cautionnement) that enables SMEs and individuals to access bank credit up to a maximum of CHF 1,000,000 for business creation, acquisition, equipment, working capital, restructuring, or commercial real estate — agriculture excluded. Pricing is a layered fee structure: a one-time CHF 300 registration fee, an appraisal fee of 1% of the guaranteed amount (CHF 500-2,700), a 1.25% annual risk premium on outstanding guarantees, and a CHF 250 annual administration fee, with the Swiss Confederation absorbing 65% of operating losses.

Operationally, Cautionnement romand runs a sales-led, expert-driven model anchored by five cantonal antennas that act as the primary interface for businesses, local banks, and cantonal authorities. The lending process requires the SME to first obtain a bank pre-agreement before submitting a dossier, meaning the 124-bank network functions both as origination channel and co-risk-taker. The cooperative's administrative infrastructure is built on Janus, an in-house software suite originally developed by Cautionnement romand and since 2016 maintained by Bürgschafts-Support AG for use by all Swiss guarantee cooperatives and SECO. In response to COVID-19, the cooperative executed the federal solidarity credit ordinance of March 25, 2020, channeling guarantees through 124 banks to support 137,850 businesses with CHF 17 billion in credit — a one-off scale event that materially expanded the organization's operational footprint.

Revenue economics are anchored in fee generation on a managed guarantee book of roughly CHF 150 million, supplemented by smaller recurring appraisal and administration fees. The model resembles a specialty financial mutuality rather than a venture-backed fintech: it is a private cooperative, has no shareholders, receives no venture or private equity capital, and is structurally limited to its federally assigned five-canton territory. Headcount of 11-50 reflects a lean operational organization despite managing a multi-hundred-million-franc guarantee portfolio, with underwriting decisions carried out by cantonal experts using the shared Janus platform.

Name

French-speaking surety

Legal name

Cautionnement romand, société coopérative

Website

https://cautionnementromand.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cautionnement romand is a Swiss cooperative providing surety bonds up to CHF 1,000,000 to SMEs and individuals across five Romandie cantons, enabling access to bank credit with 65% loss coverage from the Swiss Federal Government.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Surety / Credit Guarantee Services

NAICS

Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (522320)

SIC

Surety Insurance (6351), Federal & Federally-Sponsored Credit Agencies (6111)

akta.pro primary industry

Notary / Bail / Miscellaneous Consumer Bonds (FSAJAIAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Credit & Surety Treaty Reinsurance (FSAOAEAI)

Keywords

• Surety bond services
• SME credit guarantees
• Bank loan guarantees
• Cooperative financial services
• Swiss surety cooperatives

Headquarters

HQ city

Lausanne

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Guarantee Fees and Premiums: Revenue generated from risk premiums (1.25% annually on guaranteed amount), one-time appraisal costs (1% of guarantee amount, min CHF 500, max CHF 2,700), registration fees (CHF 300), and annual administration fees (CHF 250). Swiss Federal Government contributes 65% to loss coverage.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Cautionnement romand is a Swiss cooperative that issues solidarity surety (cautionnement) guarantees on behalf of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), natural persons, and legal entities, enabling them to obtain bank credits of up to CHF 1,000,000 for business creation, acquisition, investment, working capital, and real-estate purposes. It operates across the French-speaking cantons of Fribourg, Geneva, Neuchâtel, Valais, and Vaud, and also administers emergency COVID-19 solidarity sureties introduced under federal ordinance in March 2020.

Product overview

Cautionnement romand is a cooperative organization that provides solidarity guarantee (cautionnement) services to small and medium enterprises (SMEs), natural persons, and legal entities. The organization operates across five Swiss cantons (Fribourg, Geneva, Neuchâtel, Valais, and Vaud) and facilitates access to bank credits by acting as a surety for loans up to a maximum of CHF 1,000,000. The core offering consists of ordinary sureties for business creation, acquisition, investment, and operating needs, supplemented by emergency COVID-19 solidarity sureties introduced in 2020.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Ordinary Surety (Cautionnement ordinaire) Solidarity guarantee service for SMEs, natural persons, and legal entities in the cantons of Fribourg, Geneva, Neuchâtel, Valais, and Vaud, enabling access to bank credit for business creation, acquisition, transmission, installation, machinery and equipment purchase, stock acquisition, reorganization, working capital, and business-related real estate, up to a maximum of CHF 1,000,000.
• COVID-19 Solidarity Surety (Cautionnement solidaire COVID) Emergency solidarity guarantee providing businesses with rapid, non-bureaucratic access to liquidity to cover fixed costs despite pandemic-related revenue losses, deployed in 2020 under federal emergency ordinance.

Quantifiable outcome

• Maximum guarantee amount of CHF 1,000,000 per company

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• 124 Swiss BankscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 25 March 2020124 banks participated in COVID-19 guarantee program, providing credits guaranteed by Cautionnement romand and other guarantee organizations. General guarantee process requires bank contact and principle agreement.
• Cautionnement Suisse (Bürgschafts-Support AG)coreTechnology or Integration · 6 October 2006Cautionnement romand developed the Janus software which was later transferred to Bürgschafts-Support AG for evolution and distribution to all Swiss guarantee cooperatives and SECO (State Secretariat for Economic Affairs).
• Four Guarantee Organizations (BG Mitte, BG Ost-Süd, Cautionnement romand, SAFFA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFour recognized guarantee organizations operating under Federal Law, including Cautionnement romand covering the Romandie cantons.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Market position

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cautionnement-romand

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about French-speaking surety