In the European Union, companies may face additional responsibilities before signing contracts with new suppliers. HitHorizons can help you verify potential suppliers and reduce the risk of partnering with illegal entities.
Across European jurisdictions, companies are required to comply with various laws and directives before signing any contract with new suppliers. For example, large EU companies (with €450M+ in turnover and more than 1,000 employees) must comply with the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), which obliges them to conduct due diligence across their entire global value chains.
Small and medium-sized enterprises are exempt, but they may face indirect impacts through their supply chains.
While large companies are obliged to comply with the CSDDD, smaller companies may have similar responsibilities in their own jurisdiction or in the jurisdiction of their parent company.
For example, in France, a law called Sapin II was passed in 2016 and may affect smaller companies (those with €100M+ in turnover and 500+ employees). If a company controls foreign subsidiaries or branches outside France as well as the EU, the entire group is required to comply with Sapin II's requirements.
Depending on your jurisdiction(s), it may be difficult to comply with various laws and directives. All checks should be performed on a regular basis, not only once before signing deals with a new supplier, as the situation of your business partners may change over time due to mergers, buyouts, or bankruptcy filings.
Among other compliance rules and frameworks, you may want to verify whether your supplier is subject to the following: the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), the French Corporate Duty of Vigilance Act (DVL), the German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (LkSG), the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR), and, of course, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
To make regular checks easier and more effective, you will need the right tools and, of course, an up-to-date database of the companies you're doing business with.
We highly recommend keeping the list of suppliers and partners concise, complete and, most importantly, checked by a responsible person in your company on a yearly basis. With our HitHorizons API connector, you can automatically update all company information directly in your favourite CRM or ERP system, and perform further checks in accordance with your compliance checklist. Where applicable, you can also perform checks using the Global Sanctions List or the EU Politically Exposed Persons database.
The HitHorizons API can help you keep your list of active suppliers and partners fresh and accurate, so you're always working with reliable, up-to-date information. Before closing a deal with a prospective client, you can purchase a comprehensive financial report from HitHorizons, either through our website or via the API.
