Swiss Export Risk Insurance

Swiss Export Risk Insurance (SERV), a state-owned insurance company, offers insurance protection for Swiss exporters against political risks and the risk that a buyer or guarantor will be unable or unwilling to pay. SERV provides solutions that are not sufficiently offered by private insurers in order to protect Swiss exporters from default, facilitate export financing and support companies in obtaining low-interest loans or higher credit limits.

The Buyer Credit Insurance is a product offered to financial institutions that finance foreign acquisition of Swiss exports. The insurance protects the financial institution against the risk of the foreign borrower´s payment default caused by:

• Political causes, such as unforeseeable and extraordinary measures of foreign states, war or warlike events, revolution, civil unrest, annexation.
• Del credere risks: Insolvency of the foreign borrower or deliberate non-repayment of loan amounts within three months of its due date.
• Transfer risk: Non-transfer of repayment amount in agreed currency, no transfer as a result of impairments to international payment transactions, inability of the debtor to pay due to an official or statutory payment prohibition.
• Force majeure, such as hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions.

The Buyer Credit Insurance is available for financial institutions that finance Swiss export transactions. It is a condition that exporters are domiciled in Switzerland and that a certain percentage of the insured export’s value has been generated in Switzerland.

The Buyer Credit Insurance can be combined with SERV´s Supplier Credit Insurance: this will protect the Swiss exporter against insured risks that prevent disbursement of the buyer credit after the exporter has provided goods or services.

SERV provides their instruments in most countries. Only the following countries are not covered:

• Europe: Andorra, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Guernsey, Isle of Man, Jersey, Monaco, San Marino.
• Asia and Pacific: Micronesia, Palau, Samoa, Vanuatu.
• Latin America and Caribbean: Anguilla, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Dominica. French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Montserrat, Puerto Rico, Saint Lucia, Turks & Caicos Islands, Virgin Islands.
• North America: Bermuda, Greenland, St. Pierre & Miquelon.
• Oceania: American Samoa, Cook Islands, French Polynesia, Guam, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, N. Mariana Islands, Nauru, New Caledonia, Tonga, Tuvalu, Wallis & Futuna.
• Sub-Saharan Africa: Comoros, Mayotte, Reunion, Saint Helena.

• Size of coverage: Maximum cover ratio is 95 per cent.
• Tenor of coverage: Starting on the date of credit disbursement and ending on the payment of the last covered loan instalment.
• Range of currencies: Insurance policy can be issued in foreign currency for an additional surcharge: Euro or other convertible currencies are possible. Details: https://www.serv-ch.com/en/products/financing-options/

https://www.serv-ch.com/en/products/productfinancing/buyer-credit-insurance/