The 10th anniversary of KredEx Krediidikindlustus: hundreds of Estonian companies in 100 different markets

Exactly a week ago, on 26 November, the KredEx Krediidikindlustus family celebrated the 10th anniversary of the decision to establish an insurance company that would help Estonian businesses to grow their business volumes both domestically and in foreign markets. In ten years, more than 100 Estonian companies have been given a boost in more than 100 different markets.

 In May next year, it will be 10 years since KredEx Krediidikindlustus was registered and received its activity license. On 26 November, however, the company celebrated the day when SA KredEx decided to create, with support from the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications, Estonia’s first, and so far only, insurance company that aims to help Estonian businesses establish themselves both domestically and abroad, to grow their exports and to conquer new heights in competitive markets.

 “In 10 years, KredEx Krediidikindlustus has helped more than 100 Estonian businesses to export their products and services to more than 100 different markets. Since its establishment, the company has insured turnover worth more than 4 billion euros and paid indemnities of more than six million euros for losses, most of which have been due to payment difficulties experienced by business partners and unpaid amounts,” explains Erki Aamer, CEO of KredEx Krediidikindlustus, summarising the most important figures from the past ten years. According to him, the insurance company has helped to save many local entrepreneurs who would otherwise have had to shut up shop.

 Solutions for both large and smaller businesses

KredEx Krediidikindlustus also offers options for small businesses to insure their first or smaller transactions. Over the past decade, the insurance company has thus given a boost to smaller local entrepreneurs, helping them to become more competitive, as well as providing support to help Estonia’s largest export transactions succeed abroad. The 10-year period has seen collaboration with many of Estonia’s flagship export companies, including Cleveron and Baltic Workboats, which have both concluded a number of remarkable large-scale transactions in foreign markets, but also with important employers from a number of the counties of Estonia. Together, a sense of confidence in exporting has been established, which has helped to maintain and create many jobs across Estonia.

Compared with ten years ago, Estonian companies have a number of innovative opportunities and solutions with which to boost their exports – be it hedging a foreign partner’s payment risks via insurance or even securing financing for their clients.

 Dealing with foreign markets must be ambitious, but secure

 According to Aamer, securing financing is something that the partners of our exporters have already been doing for a long time, but it is still a new and undiscovered option in Estonia. “For example, when a company wants to buy machinery, equipment or an expensive IT project, they must think about financing. Here, the exporter can facilitate the purchase for the buyer and offer them financing as well,” Aamer explains.

 “Now, the first companies in Estonia, like Baltic Workboats and Cleveron, have tried this option to offer their clients a long-term payment deadline, using export loans and credit insurance. This has proved to be a good alternative for foreign partners and our companies have concluded important transactions in this way, thereby growing their exports,” explains Aamer, adding that alongside this comparatively new solution, insuring payment risks associated with partners has increasingly become a normal part of operations.

 KredEx Krediidikindlustus is the only insurance company in Estonia that helps Estonian businesses to hedge credit risks related to both exports and domestic sales in order to increase the competitiveness and export potential of local businesses.

Read more about the options offered by KredEx Krediidikindlustus: www.krediidikindlustus.ee