1 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean basin Tunis, October, 2000

2 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, Solution on track, on the road to B2B commerce Jérôme Cazes Group Managing Director Coface Group

3 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000   Problems in B2B for African companies are the same, … and worse!...

4 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000   Visibility and credibility of own company to take part in it,   Confidence in B2B partners   Security in B2B transactions, and financing of these transactions Companies face 3 main problems with B2B

5 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000   new comers   more visibility, credibility, security and financing problems   from their own image, and from Africa image B2BproblemsareworseforAfricancompanies B2B problems are worse for African companies

6 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000   within months, 35 million companies will be "at a click" of e-commerce   immediate visibility and credibility become a vital issue Ecommercewillmeanmuchmoreofthesame E - commerce will mean much more of the same inB2B in B2B

7 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000   Will it be for worse ? And exclusion "at a click"   Or for better ? When you are a new player, you can afford more flexibility and openness to new techniques Consequences for African companies

8 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000 What is the Solution ?   is the first worldwide system which rates 35 million reliable companies active in B2B. It is the basis of 3 lines of products. A company can certify its quality through quality Label. quality label of a company, anywhere in the world, can be obtained on line, for free (check or monitoring). The credit risk on companies with quality Label can be protected Protections, and bring financing 1. Enhanced visibility and credibility for your own company 2. Confidence in your B2B partners 3. Enhanced transaction security and financing

9 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000 What is the quality Label ?   quality label distinguishes those companies that respect their undertakings in B2B commerce. It is reinforced by a logo:   It is accompanied by a rating for recommended outstanding of 20 KE, 50 KE, 100 KE or more).   It is low in cost (600 euros first year then 300 euros per year), and risk-free: all data is protected by a confidentiality agreement.

10 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000 : a credible, worldwide, insurable label : a credible, worldwide, insurable label   Information and references provided are checked: the trust already built up by the company is the foundation for its future business.   17 service centres, already service companies with the quality label in 47 countries (80 by the end of the year)   Through Protection, any company can obtain protection from the risk of non payment of credit granted to a company with quality Label. Hence it facilitates the obtention of supplier credit by the certified company.

11 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000 quality Label offers clear benefits for today's businesses (as a seal of quality increased security and financing) quality Label is the solution to access the tools of the future (access to electronic marketplaces, to secure payment systems, to PKI electronic certification, etc.) A solution for the commerce of today, and for the e-commerce tomorrow

12 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000 A growing recognition as a worldwide standard 65 partnership have already been signed agreements and negotiations have been initiated with 264 more potential partners in 45 countries. - With credit insurers, with CreditAlliance, the premier network in 42 countries, with EID Miti and more - With credit information providers with InfoAlliance, the premier network in 64 countries, with Teikoku Data Bank, and more - With banks and factors (ABN Amro, Banques Populaires, Visa International,…), 160+ electronic marketplaces, B2B service providers (Gemplus, TradeCard, Kompass, Oracle,...), trade organisations...

13 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000 More on cofacerating.com...

14 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000

15 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000 Why is it important for an African company?   You are an African, Mediterranean basin (or American!) company, you have a contact with a new partner, a prospective supplier or customer; how can you tell him that you can be trusted and/or deserve credit in a quick, understandable, free and reliable way?   Just by telling him, "my company deserves the quality Label, which you can check in your language and for free on the web"

16 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000 Why is it particularly useful for African companies?   Visibility, security, financing is vital for them   Their real risk is lower than perceived risk   They are close to approach of limited transparency   And close toapproach of a confidence based on references as much as on figures

17 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000 The benefit for credit insurers   Traditional credit insurance is a costly solution : electronics make it affordable   Solution reinforces this trend, and is adopted and contemplated by a number of credit insurers present in this room

18 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000 The benefit for African economies   It is quick and inexpensive to implement   It improves the cost of imports and the value of exports   It brings external financing

19 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000 The benefit for cooperation agencies   can bring real immediate benefits to the country   It is an open standard : any credit insurer, bank, institution can bring its value added for free on the quality Label   Leverage can be improved through targeted "rating enhancement systems" and an easy mix between public and private risk covers

20 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000 Coface technical assistance proposal   Coface cannot be suspected to be motivated by profit on a 300$ annual international certification of an emerging market company.   It is open to international or local partners to roll out Solution in Africa, in parallele with the roll out in emerged markets.

21 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean, Tunis, October, 2000 Developing Credit Insurance in Africa and the Mediterranean basin Tunis, October, 2000