Zefix, Moneyhouse or SHAB: Which One to Use
Use Zefix to find a Swiss company's register entry and SHAB to read the official notice behind a change. Moneyhouse combines company research with credit information and filtered searches. For a prospect list, compare business-monitor.ch's target-group filters with Prospex's market definition and explanations of company fit. Prospex supplies company targeting and monitoring; it has no contact or credit data.
Choose the source for the question
| Your question | Start here | What to check next |
|---|---|---|
| What is this company's registered identity? | Zefix | Open the cantonal register extract for the detailed entry. |
| What register change was published, and when? | SHAB / FOSC | Read the notice and its publication date. |
| Who manages the company, and what credit information is available? | Moneyhouse | Check the available report and the access included in your plan. |
| How can I filter and export a Swiss prospect list? | business-monitor.ch | Check the fields you need and the plan's export allowance. |
| Which Swiss companies fit the market I describe? | Prospex | Review the fit explanations and missing information in a free preview. |
Zefix: find the register entry
The Federal Commercial Registry Office maintains Zefix, the central business name index. It provides access to registered entities and links to the relevant cantonal register. Use the name or UID to identify the company, then open the extract to examine its purpose and registered representatives. Zefix is an index; a certified extract and the published SHAB entry are the legally binding documents. Swiss National Library: register research.
Public lookups are free. The official documentation describes a daily update and search filters, as well as a REST API. A separate open dataset provides daily core data for active registered entities. These are useful options when you need official identifiers for your own data workflow. Federal Office of Justice: Zefix services; Zefix open data.
SHAB / FOSC: read what was published
The Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SHAB in German, FOSC in French) publishes commercial register notices and other legal announcements. Search it for the text behind a capital increase or a management change. Current notices are freely accessible; the Swiss National Library also explains how to find historical editions. Official research guide.
Record the publication date separately from any registration or event date mentioned in the notice. A legal change still needs commercial context: a capital increase alone does not establish that a company is looking for your service. Company websites and your account research help establish fit.
Moneyhouse: research companies and search by attributes
Moneyhouse Premium advertises management networks and ownership information, with company search filters that include sector, turnover and headcount. Credit information has its own access allowances. Check the company and report you need before treating an available figure as complete financial accounts. Moneyhouse Premium features.
Monitoring covers companies and people, as well as keywords appearing in SHAB notices. The documentation also describes credit and trademark alerts. Its API offers automated data access, including daily updated SHAB notices. Moneyhouse following; Moneyhouse API.
If your main task is finding new accounts, read our Moneyhouse alternative guide for Swiss B2B prospecting for the targeting workflow and the situations where Moneyhouse fits better.
business-monitor.ch: build filtered prospect lists
business-monitor.ch's Sales hunter plan advertises more than 30 targeting filters, 200 prospect exports per month in Excel and notifications for new companies in saved groups. Its FAQ describes enrichment from company websites. Contact fields and company watchlists are also part of its offer. Plan details and FAQ.
Check contact availability and export allowances in our business-monitor.ch alternative guide before choosing how to build and monitor your prospect list.
Prospex: review the companies that fit your market
Describe the Swiss companies you want to reach and optionally add example customers. Prospex explains each company's fit and provides sourced company facts. The results show information gaps; you can review them and create a watch from the market. Inspect company-level explanations and measured coverage for a real manufacturing market in the Market Builder example.
Prospex uses register data and company websites alongside other public sources. Automated classification can be wrong, so inspect the evidence for companies that matter to your list. Contact details and credit data must be sourced separately. A free account includes one market and shows its first ten companies; discuss paid access directly with Prospex.
Compare the date of the fact you need
A daily register refresh says little about the age of a company's revenue figure or the last time its website was read. Ask for the source and date of the specific field, then check alert delivery separately. The documentation reviewed here does not establish which provider delivers every type of change first.
Build a free market . One market, with the first ten companies visible. You can also inspect the example before signing up.