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NEW YORK, March 16, 2000 - TradeCard Inc., an emerging on-line business-to-business transaction settlement network, and Coface, the world's largest export credit insurer, announced today a partnership which enables buyers and sellers around the world to complete their transactions online without having to resort to traditional, paper-based financial guarantee methods. This agreement, signed on March 16, 2000 adds a critical piece to TradeCard's revolutionary e-commerce service, providing documentary compliance and settlement while assisting the world's trading community to expand the global reach of their businesses.
With an initial series of partnership agreements just announced, TradeCard is moving aggressively toward its goal of establishing a global e-commerce financial settlement network. The TradeCard network is a service that will provide global traders with a secure, reliable and inexpensive online documentary compliance system and transaction settlement mechanism. TradeCard recently announced strategic alliances in Hong Kong and Taiwan that will link thousands of international traders in Asia to TradeCard's growing international community. The TradeCard network is currently running in limited production. A full commercial launch of this system will occur in first quarter of 2000.
"TradeCard will be an international e-commerce transaction enabler," says TradeCard's Chief Executive Officer, Kurt Cavano. "We aggregate all the core elements of an international transaction in one location so you can go from purchase order to payment in a fast, easy, secure and inexpensive process. Up to now, no method existed to complete international transactions in the e-commerce world. Businesses would have to drop offline and use paper- and labor-intensive tools. By putting the missing financial link into the process, TradeCard enables the buyer and seller to electronically complete their transaction while remaining online."
"Providing tools that facilitate business-to-business e-commerce on an international scale is absolutely important and part of our strategy going forward," says Coface's Chief Executive Officer, Jerome Cazes. "The underlying mechanism that needs to be in place to allow transactions to occur is trust. Trust that the goods will arrive, and trust that payment will be made. By combining TradeCard's ability to simplify the transaction process along with Coface's ability to provide credit ratings and cross-border credit insurance, we believe this partnership will have a tremendous impact on how businesses transact globally."
Coface recently launched its @rating solution, a worldwide trade-debt rating application designed for international trade. @rating is produced from the expertise of Coface and the underwriters of CreditAlliance, a network of 39 credit insurers, and on a monitored database of 35 million companies in more than 147 countries. It is available through the Internet and assesses a company's ability to meet its commercial obligations. @rating has a time horizon of 6 months. It is specially aimed to facilitate e-commerce transactions in the $1,000-$100,000 range. @rating applies the logic of rating combined with 50 years of trade insurance experience to the assessment of trade debt. Additionally, Coface and its partner credit insurers will be prepared to stand over its rating and link a guarantee to @rating through separate insurance contracts.
"In order to drive the profound and fundamental changes that the Internet promises, partnerships need to be formed that can make this a reality. We believe Coface and TradeCard are a perfect fit. Together we are able to aggressively introduce an innovative service that will dramatically alter the way businesses interact," Mr. Cavano explained.
About TradeCard's Global E-Commerce Trade Settlement Network
The first step in becoming an approved member in the TradeCard network is to complete an online application. All applicants' data is reviewed according to an established set of criteria set forth by Coface, and once approved, members may access TradeCard's highly secured open architecture network.
When a buyer and seller agree to transact, the TradeCard system allows them to negotiate contract terms and conditions online. Once a transaction is established in electronic form with both parties in agreement, the seller will formally approve the terms of the purchasing contract. Each purchase order is then attached with a guarantee for payment through Coface and their @rating service ensuring that the buyer will make the payment automatically upon receipt of the goods. When the goods are shipped, TradeCard's patented compliance engine compares the shipping information with the purchase order. If the terms are met, the payment is made automatically. The buyer gets their goods and the seller gets their money.
About TradeCard, Inc.
TradeCard is enabling one-stop electronic commerce services for the emerging business-to-business online communities and the world's leading importers and exporters. Founded in 1994, TradeCard is headquartered in New York City. The company was named one of the top 10 e-commerce technologies of 1998 by Future Banker magazine. TradeCard can be found on the worldwide web at www.tradecard.com.
About the Coface Group - Export Credit Insurance World Leader
Rated AA by Fitch IBCA, the Coface Group is the world leader in export credit insurance, as well as France's leading source of credit information and the manager of French government export guarantees. The Group is listed on the Paris Bourse. The Coface Group supports the development of domestic and international trade through the provision of a full range of credit related services. These include domestic and cross-border credit insurance, investment insurance, research into prospective buyers, credit information, customer monitoring and receivables management. Coface now provides expert solutions to over 60,000 clients in 73 countries around the world. The Group also offers access to two global networks, CreditAlliance and InfoAlliance, which are based on a common risk system for credit information and the use of common products and standards worldwide.
On the 7th of December 1999, Coface announced the launching of @rating, the first worldwide trade debt rating on the web. For information on Coface's @rating, go to www.cofacerating.com. Coface can be found on the worldwide web at www.coface.com.
