Purpose. This thesis work aims at investigating deeply trade credit insurance in the field of credit management. It is compared to its main competitor: factoring. The two instruments, in fact, compete in the market, but they are characterized by very different services, advantages and drawbacks. Thus, their conditions, roles within companies and the determinants that drive a company to adopt one solution over the other will be analysed. In parallel, this study is intended to understand the activities carried out by insurance brokers in this process and their importance to companies. Methodology. A deep analysis of research articles, reports, websites of providers, and annual reports of several Italian firms was performed. The outcome was then validated, enriched, and modified through seven dedicated interviews with managers who cope daily with trade credits in different sectors. Findings. The objective of obtaining anticipated cash inflows drives companies towards factoring, while credit insurance is more frequently adopted in case the firm mainly seeks to decrease credit losses. In addition, the competences and experience of insurance brokers are often vital to completely exploit the advantages of credit insurance not only during the contract definition, but also throughout the validity of the policy. Originality. The contributions of this study are twofold. First, the most impacting factors and the reasons behind the adoption of credit insurance and factoring are detailed. These results enrich the academic content thanks to a large number of variables, which encompass the objectives of the company as well as a set of contingent variables related to both the firm itself and its customer base. Second, the theoretical knowledge of insurance brokers is enhanced through the explanation of their functionalities and the reasons behind their recourse among enterprises. Practical implications. The information gathered and the findings of this work can be considered beneficial for companies willing to understand whether credit insurance can bring value to them. In addition, this study can help managers to have a complete picture of the importance and benefits that insurance brokers can provide in both the local and global insurance market. Research limitations. However, only these traditional tools of credit management were included in this study. Thus, its scope was limited to just two of the available instruments in the market.
Obiettivi. Questo lavoro di tesi intende investigare l’assicurazione del credito nell’ambito della gestione dei crediti commerciali. È comparata al suo principale concorrente: il factoring. Questi due strumenti, infatti, competono sul mercato, ma sono caratterizzati da diversi processi, vantaggi e costi. Le loro peculiarità, i ruoli che rivestono all’interno delle imprese e le ragioni che spingono un’azienda ad adottare una soluzione piuttosto che l’altra sono dunque analizzate. In parallelo, questo studio ambisce a comprendere le attività svolte dai broker assicurativi e la loro importanza per le imprese. Metodologia. Al fine di raggiungere questi obiettivi, è stata svolta un’attenta analisi di articoli, report, siti internet dei fornitori di tali strumenti e relazioni finanziarie annuali di aziende italiane. I risultati di tale analisi sono stati poi validati, arricchiti e modificati attraverso sette interviste a manager che gestiscono crediti commerciali in diversi settori. Risultati. L’obiettivo di avere flussi di cassa anticipati spinge le aziende ad adottare il factoring, mentre l’assicurazione del credito è più frequentemente adottata nel caso in cui l’impresa cercasse di diminuire le perdite su crediti. Inoltre, l’esperienza e le competenze dei broker assicurativi sono spesso fondamentali per sfruttare appieno i vantaggi dell’assicurazione del credito non solo nel corso della stesura del contratto, ma anche durante l’intera validità della polizza. Originalità. Due principali contributi fornisce questo studio. Anzitutto, i fattori più rilevanti e le ragioni dietro il ricorso all’assicurazione del credito piuttosto che al factoring sono dettagliate. Questi risultati arricchiscono la letteratura grazie all’elevato numero di variabili considerate, che comprendono gli obiettivi dell’impresa, i suoi fattori contingenti e la sua base clienti. Inoltre, le conoscenze riguardanti i broker assicurativi sono incrementate tramite la spiegazione dei servizi da loro forniti e delle motivazioni dietro il loro ricorso tra le imprese. Implicazioni manageriali. Le informazioni raccolte e le conclusioni di questo lavoro possono essere utili alle aziende che desiderano comprendere se l’assicurazione del credito possa creare valore aggiunto nella propria casistica. In aggiunta, questo studio può aiutare i manager ad avere una panoramica completa sull’importanza e sui servizi forniti da un broker assicurativo. Limiti e ricerche future. Solamente tali strumenti tradizionali di gestione del credito sono inclusi in questo studio. Il suo ambito è dunque limitato a solamente due tra gli strumenti disponibili sul mercato.
The role of insurance in supporting trade credit
BADALIN, STEFANO;HELAL, AHMAD MOHAMED AHMAD
2019/2020
Abstract
Purpose. This thesis work aims at investigating deeply trade credit insurance in the field of credit management. It is compared to its main competitor: factoring. The two instruments, in fact, compete in the market, but they are characterized by very different services, advantages and drawbacks. Thus, their conditions, roles within companies and the determinants that drive a company to adopt one solution over the other will be analysed. In parallel, this study is intended to understand the activities carried out by insurance brokers in this process and their importance to companies. Methodology. A deep analysis of research articles, reports, websites of providers, and annual reports of several Italian firms was performed. The outcome was then validated, enriched, and modified through seven dedicated interviews with managers who cope daily with trade credits in different sectors. Findings. The objective of obtaining anticipated cash inflows drives companies towards factoring, while credit insurance is more frequently adopted in case the firm mainly seeks to decrease credit losses. In addition, the competences and experience of insurance brokers are often vital to completely exploit the advantages of credit insurance not only during the contract definition, but also throughout the validity of the policy. Originality. The contributions of this study are twofold. First, the most impacting factors and the reasons behind the adoption of credit insurance and factoring are detailed. These results enrich the academic content thanks to a large number of variables, which encompass the objectives of the company as well as a set of contingent variables related to both the firm itself and its customer base. Second, the theoretical knowledge of insurance brokers is enhanced through the explanation of their functionalities and the reasons behind their recourse among enterprises. Practical implications. The information gathered and the findings of this work can be considered beneficial for companies willing to understand whether credit insurance can bring value to them. In addition, this study can help managers to have a complete picture of the importance and benefits that insurance brokers can provide in both the local and global insurance market. Research limitations. However, only these traditional tools of credit management were included in this study. Thus, its scope was limited to just two of the available instruments in the market.| File | Dimensione | Formato | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
2020_12_Badalin_Helal.pdf
non accessibile
Descrizione: Thesis text
Dimensione
1.94 MB
Formato
Adobe PDF
|
1.94 MB | Adobe PDF | Visualizza/Apri |
I documenti in POLITesi sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
https://hdl.handle.net/10589/169450