Press Release

Braunschweig, 14 November 2019. Volkswagen Bank GmbH has acquired a 20 percent stake in the Austrian fintech company Credi2 GmbH. Founded in 2015, the Vienna-based enterprise develops digital request sequences and process applications for credit products. Looking forward, these are set to become – also in the form of white label solutions – the platform for new credit offers from Volkswagen Bank to meet mobility needs. In addition, further Volkswagen Financial Services group companies can also be integrated through a modular system, which will thus enable an efficient and digital credit system to be put into service.

"By acquiring a stake in Credi2, we are continuing to pursue our growth strategy and accelerating the digitalization of our business model. Thanks to the Credi2 applications, we will be able to make considerable technological progress, further automate our lending business, and save costs as a result. And by implementing the Credi2 application process, we are also shortening our times to market," explains Dr. Michael Reinhart, Chairman of the Management Board of Volkswagen Bank GmbH.

Daniel Strieder, CEO of Credi2, adds: "The most important aspects for us are always customer benefit and customer friendliness. We have found a partner in Volkswagen Bank that will enable us to make our solutions accessible to a large customer segment together and profit from the technical expertise of a major and successful bank. As a specialist for process automation in the credit domain, we want to help Volkswagen Bank become even better prepared for the challenges of the future."

Applying for credit takes place completely online and fast. After a few personal details have been entered, the customer's creditworthiness is automatically checked. To verify his or her identity, a brief video call is required that involves holding either an identity card or a passport in front of the camera. The credit contract can then be signed via SMS-TAN. The entire procedure takes less than 10 minutes.


Information for editors

Volkswagen Financial Services are a business division of the Volkswagen AG group of companies and comprise Volkswagen Financial Services AG along with its associated companies, Volkswagen Bank GmbH, Porsche Financial Services, and the financial services companies in the USA and Canada that belong directly or indirectly to Volkswagen AG – with the exception of the financial services of the Scania brand and Porsche Holding Salzburg. The key business fields embrace dealer and customer financing, leasing, the bank and insurance business, fleet management and mobility offers. Volkswagen Financial Services have a total of 16,267 employees worldwide – including 7,010 alone in Germany. Volkswagen Financial Services report total assets of around EUR 207.6 billion, an operating result of EUR 2.6 billion and a portfolio of around 20.3 million current contracts (as at: 31.12.2018).

Credi2 GmbH is based in Vienna and was founded in 2015 by Daniel Strieder, Michael Handler and Jörg Skornschek. It collaborates with banks to develop and operate digital financing solutions. The company's central asset in this enterprise is its own modular system, which covers all the key components of a financing transaction. As a result, all steps such as customer onboarding, risk analysis, account management and the dunning process can be mapped using one solution and tailored to the individual needs of a particular bank. The required user interfaces for IOS and Android apps as well as desktop versions and all the automated customer communication also form part of the existing modules. The company's best-known product for end customers is a flexible framework credit called cashpresso.