Coface Appoints Benoit Urbin as UK & Ireland Country Manager

Coface is pleased to announce the appointment of Benoît Urbin as Country Manager for the United Kingdom & Ireland.

Benoît is based in London and reports to Carine Pichon, CEO of Coface in Western Europe. He replaces Frederic Bourgeois, who will continue his career outside of the Coface Group.

Benoît brings a wealth of experience, having already spent nearly ten years within the Coface Group. He has held a variety of senior roles in the company, first in Western Europe within the commercial and underwriting departments, then in North America as Country Manager & Chief Agent of Coface Canada, then Chief Operating Officer for the North America region. Prior to joining Coface, Benoît held an array of executive roles at American Express.

Coface has been active in the UK since 1993 and in Ireland since 2001. It provides companies with credit insurance solutions to protect them from unpaid debts, late payments, political risk, and other losses arising from non-payment for goods or services. Coface also uses its business intelligence database to serve corporations with reliable information on their partners, be they suppliers or clients, and helps them evaluate their financial health and minimise the risks.

“Thanks to his knowledge of the company and of the credit-insurance market, and thanks to his international experience in the insurance & payment industries, Benoît will strengthen Coface's capabilities as we are looking to grow our business and gain new customers in the United Kingdom & Ireland”, said Carine Pichon, CEO of Coface in Western Europe.

"As we look ahead, companies will continue to face a highly volatile business environment. I am delighted to take on the responsibility of Coface's activities in the United Kingdom and Ireland at a time when our value proposition as a credit insurer and provider of business information is more relevant than ever. We are in a period where companies need to rely on the expertise of a risk management player to help them assess business opportunities, mitigate cash flow challenges, or secure access to financing”, commented Benoît Urbin.

Coface also wants to thank Frederic Bourgeois for his engagement over the last 11 years and wish him success in future endeavours.