Digital Lending is a rapidly evolving segment of debt markets around the world. It enables private and institutional investors to finance consumers and businesses. This gives both groups access to digital debt capital. Fintech lenders improve the supply of credit, expand the investment spectrum and, hence, provide a positive contribution to the EU Capital Market Union. The aim of our association is promoting Digital Lending as an alluring sub-segment of private debt in Europe.
history
The relevance and appeal of Fintech Lenders has been growing rapidly in Europe and in particular in Germany. Against this backdrop, the association was founded on June 4, 2019, by Dr. Jens Engelmann-Pilger (former General Counsel with Funding Circle Germany), Dr. Tim Thabe (Co-Founder of creditshelf), Philipp Kriependorf (Co-Founder of auxmoney), Ralph Pieper (former CFO with Kapilendo), Andreas Knopf (General Counsel with Kapilendo), Pelin Wolk (former CMO with Funding Circle Germany) and Marc von Ammon (former General Counsel with creditshelf). You can see our fellow founders here in the photograph in the order mentioned. For the first time, the industry is thus able to articulate and represent its interests with one voice.
In June 2023 the general meeting of the association unanimously approved the change of the trade body’s name to Digital Lending Association. The renaming was a consequence of the market development and our positioning activities in recent years. Digital Lending has developed into an attractive asset class in the private debt segment worldwide and especially in Europe. It was therefore only logical that the „Verband deutscher Kreditplattformen“ became the Digital Lending Association.
We are the Power of Fintech Lending!
we join in voluntary transparency
We are signatories to the Transparent Civil Society initiative and want to help strengthen trust in our civil society with transparency.
On the initiative of Transparency International Germany, numerous actors from civil society and academia have defined ten basic points that every civil society organization should make accessible to the public. These include, among other things, the articles of association, the names of key decision-makers, and information on the source of funds, use of funds, and personnel structure.
Here you FIND our information in accordance with the voluntary commitment of the Transparent Civil Society Initiative.
Newsroom
ACTIVITIES
The association is committed to strengthening digital finance and investing in Europe. The aim is to improve access to Digital Lending for consumers and companies by institutional and private investors and to ensure fair competition. To this end, the association performs the following tasks:
› Definition of industry standards
› Representation of the interests of debtors and creditors as clients of the digital lenders
› Information about the economic and social impact of Digital Lending
› Increasing market transparency through the regular publication of industry numbers
› Dialogue with decision-makers in the political arena, public administration and other industry associations at national and European level
› Organisation of annual industry events: Digital Lending Summit and FINTICS – WHERE FINTECH MEETS POLITICS
› Regular publication of industry news in the Quarterly Briefing
› The opportunity for transparent high-level discussions with our two podcast formats: „FINTICS“ and „What’s up Digital Lending?“
industry standards
The members of the association jointly develop industry standards. They are an important step on the way to a uniform seal of quality. Once all the standards have been completed, only those members who have had their compliance independently verified by an external institution will be allowed to use this seal. No one else in the ecosystem formulates this high quality standard. The general assembly, as the highest body of the association, has already adopted six industry standards:
For a commentary on the Industry Standards on Compliance Management, Disclosures & Numbers, and Non-discriminatory Behaviour by our Co-Founder and General Counsel of INVESDOR, Attorney Andreas Knopf, please click here (in German only).
A further commentary on the Industry Standard on Complaints Management by Dr. Ernst von Stegmann, former Senior Vice President Enterprise Risk Management & Compliance bei auxmoney, can be read here (in German only).
Last but not least, for an interview with Philipp Kriependorf, Co-Founder & Managing Director of auxmoney as well as Co-Founder & Board Member with our association, on the Industry Standard on Outsourcing please click here (in German only).
Quarterly Briefing
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