Coface North America at-a-glance

Coface began its North American operations in the early 1990s. In the area of business information services Coface acquired a stake in two credit-reporting agencies, as well as the Kompass International franchises for the United States and Canada. This provided Coface’s international customers with access to current business information from the US and Canada, and it offered companies located in North America access to its rich array of international credit reports and scores.

At about the same time, Coface initiated a joint venture with then CNA Credit to provide export protection to CNA Credit policyholders. This venture proved beneficial to both organizations, and at the end of 2002 Coface extended its presence by acquiring the CNA Credit unit. In 2003, Coface North America Insurance Company was created to provide credit insurance policies directly to businesses in the United States.

In 2004, Coface S.A., the parent of Coface North America, received permission from authorities to open a branch office in Canada. The office was established to amplify and broaden Coface’s existing presence in Canada. Coface North America has put in place a team to manage and underwrite the Canadian business. In 2005, Coface entered into an agreement with Export Development Canada (EDC) for the provision of domestic receivables cover to EDC’s short term insurance customers. This agreement enables Canadian exporters who receive insurance cover for their export receivables from EDC to obtain cover for their domestic receivables from Coface.

In October 2006, Coface North America acquired the commercial debt recovery firm, Newton & Associates. This acquisition significantly increased Coface’s presence in the commercial collections industry.

Coface North America is headquartered in East Windsor, New Jersey, with corporate offices in New York City; New Haven, Connecticut; Metairie, Louisiana and Boston, Massachusetts, with a total number of 120 employees. Approximately 90 regional sales agents are located in 32 cities in the US and Canada.