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Kreditschutzverband (KSV), one of SkyMinder's long-standing European information partners, has enhanced the range of reports offered to SkyMinder clients.

As well as offering enhanced online coverage of public and private Austrian companies, KSV's online credit reports on German companies are now available written in Italian language, together with the previously available English version. Reports written in Italian on Austrian companies will be available online later this year.

KSV also provides SkyMinder with Freshly Investigated Credit Reports on Austrian and German companies, available through SkyMinder's online ORDER NOW function. These offline reports can be ordered in English, German or Italian, according to client preference.

As announced to all SkyMinder clients at the end of June, SkyMinder passwords now only need to be updated every 90 days, instead of every 30 days, making things easier for users accessing the online service.

SkyMinder has always ensured a high levels of security for customers' online transactions - the password change process is just one of the ways that client security is enforced.

Forgotten your password? Email info@skyminder.com

The SkyMinder Content Development Team is always working hard forging new alliances with locally-based international information providers, enhancing the existing network of contacts and giving SkyMinder users access to credit reports from an ever-better variety of sources.

Lately, SkyMinder announced 7 new information providers providing offline reports on countries including China, Sweden, Belgium, Portugal, Egypt, Tunisia, Slovakia, Croatia and the USA.

"When we order a report from our local information providers they provide us with freshly investigated reports containing information uncovered that very day," states Silvia Cappelli, SkyMinder's Manager. "This kind of report is becoming more and more popular with our clients and we are happy to be able to offer such a wide variety of sources."

Credit Reports on companies in the Netherlands are easily available through SkyMinder, but what should professionals purchasing credit information on Dutch companies be aware of?

The key is consider the company in the context of the country where it is located, and not to assume that what holds true for our own domestic market is also the case for overseas countries.

There is no central registry in the Netherlands although every business must register basic information with the local Chambers of Commerce, such as company name and address, legal status, line of business, number of employees, directors and shareholder information. This data is then made available for public inspection.

About half of Hollands estimated 600,000 companies are public limited or limited companies (NV - Naamloze Vennootschap) and non-limited companies (BV - Besloten Vennootschap). The remaining companies are partnerships (Vennootschappen onder Firma), limited partnerships (Commanditaire Vennootschappen) and proprietorships (Eenmanszaken).

Obligations to publish financial data must be considered when reading through a Dutch credit report. Don't be fooled into thinking that a company has only published partial financial information - the rules differ greatly by company legal status. BVs and NVs are obliged to file and publish their financials.

NVs must file annually, including a directors' report, balance sheet, P&L account, notes to accounts and the auditor's report.

BV companies must also file information, but the amount they are required to publish depends on the size of the company. Small companies need only publish a simplified balance sheet along with the explanation. Medium sized companies must publish this too, but accompany it with a simplified P&L, an annual report and an auditor's report. The rules for large companies are much the same as medium sized ones, but the balance sheet must be a complete not simplified version.

It is important to remember that parent companies of Dutch BV or NV companies are entitled to file a Declaration of Liability for its subsidiaries. The production of this document means that the subsidiary company is no longer obliged to file their own accounts but have the option of filing the parent company's consolidated accounts if they wish.

Basic banking information is available and can be found in credit reports, while personal information is difficult to find other than bankruptcy information.

All things considered, the first step in analysing a Dutch company is to be sure that your information comes from a reliable, high quality source. The second step is to keep in mind that Dutch companies, as with companies in any country, operate in a unique business environment and should be treated as such.