CommuniGate Systems

What CommuniGate Systems does

qardsCOM GmbH (originally CommuniGate Kommunikationsservice GmbH, founded 1998 by Bayern Card-Services GmbH and Lufthansa AirPlus Servicekarten GmbH, and now a wholly-owned subsidiary of qards GmbH) provides outsourced, multi-channel customer-communication services to credit card issuers, banks, and members of the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe in the DACH region. The core offering is a unified suite covering inbound telephony, outbound telephony, written service (email, fax, letter, and online chat), multilingual support (German and English), and white-label customization under each client's corporate design. The company is staffed by 460+ employees and operates at scale on disclosed metrics of 44M+ managed credit cards, 2M+ inbound/outbound telephone calls per year, and 722K+ written cases per year.

The technology and operating posture are people-led rather than platform-led. qardsCOM delivers services under each client's brand identity ("implementation of client corporate design across all communication processes"), with case management spanning data changes through individual case handling under defined deadlines. Revenue is generated through individual B2B service contracts with institutional clients — there is no public pricing, no self-serve onboarding, and the go-to-market motion is direct enterprise sales rather than product-led growth. Distribution is concentrated through a single channel: a direct sales force engaging financial institutions, supplemented by a dedicated B2B portal (institute.qards.de) and client login (mein-konto). Marketing presence is limited to the corporate website, LinkedIn, and Instagram channels oriented to employer branding.

The competitive position rests on a regulatory and certification moat. qardsCOM holds PCI DSS certification (verifiable through the usd AG compliance portal) and is fully compliant with Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe guidelines, alongside its parent qards GmbH. These credentials, combined with 25+ years of operating history, deep ties to its founding clients Bayern Card-Services and Lufthansa AirPlus, and a multi-lingual, multi-channel service portfolio, define the company's positioning as a specialized, compliance-anchored BPO for German-speaking financial institutions rather than a generalist call center.

Name

CommuniGate Systems

Legal name

qardsCOM GmbH

Website

https://communigate.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

qardsCOM GmbH (formerly CommuniGate Kommunikationsservice GmbH), a wholly-owned subsidiary of qards GmbH, provides outsourced multi-channel customer-communication services — inbound and outbound telephony, written case handling, and multilingual support — to credit card issuers, banks, and Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe members in the DACH region, with PCI DSS-certified operations handling 44M+ managed credit cards.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

B2B Contact Center Services

NAICS

Telephone Call Centers (56142), Telemarketing Bureaus and Other Contact Centers (561422)

SIC

Services-Management Services (8741)

akta.pro primary industry

Customer Communications Management (CCM) & Transactional Messaging (MPAAAIAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Customer Retention, Win-Back & Churn Reduction Programs (MPAAAIAH)

Keywords

• Customer communication services
• Financial services contact center
• Credit card support services
• Outsourced customer dialogue
• Multilingual contact center

Headquarters

HQ city

Passau

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Communication Services for Financial Institutions: B2B provision of telephone (inbound/outbound) and written communication services (email, fax, letter, online chat) to credit card issuers and financial institutions. Revenue is generated through service contracts with corporate clients, likely on a per-transaction or recurring retainer basis. Services are customized to each client's corporate design and operated as an extension of the client's brand.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

CommuniGate Systems (operating as qardsCOM GmbH) provides outsourced telephone and written customer communication services to credit card issuers and financial institutions in the DACH region. The offering covers inbound call handling, outbound customer outreach, and multi-channel written case processing (email, fax, letter, online chat), delivered under the client's corporate brand identity by a multilingual team of 460+ employees.

Product overview

qardsCOM GmbH operates as a customer communication services provider offering a unified suite of telephone and written communication services. The portfolio consists of five core service modules: Inbound-Telefonie (inbound call handling), Outbound-Telefonie (outbound customer outreach), Schriftlicher Service (multi-channel written communication including email, fax, letter, and online chat), Mehrsprachigkeit (multilingual support), and Individualisierung (corporate design customization). These services are delivered by 460+ employees handling 44 million+ managed credit cards, 2 million+ annual calls, and 722,000+ written transactions per year.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Inbound Telephony (Inbound-Telefonie) Inbound telephone customer service providing competent and friendly support for business partners on all questions and concerns related to their company and products. Service is delivered under the client's corporate brand and targets credit card issuers and financial institutions in the DACH region.
• Outbound Telephony (Outbound-Telefonie) Active customer outreach service designed for long-term customer retention, combining service delivery with a thorough understanding of customer needs by proactively engaging end customers on behalf of credit card issuers and financial institutions.
• Written Customer Service (Schriftlicher Service) Professional cross-channel written customer dialogue covering data changes and individual case handling, delivered via email, fax, letter, and online chat. Services are channel-spanning and delivered within defined deadlines for financial institution clients.
• Multilingual Support (Mehrsprachigkeit) Multilingual expert support handling end customer inquiries in English and other languages, complementing German-language service delivery for financial institution clients operating in international cardholder markets.

Named customers2 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Bayern Card-Services GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1998Bayern Card-Services GmbH was one of two founding partners (alongside Lufthansa AirPlus Servicekarten GmbH) when CommuniGate Kommunikationsservice GmbH was established in 1998. Bayern Card-Services is a credit card services provider within the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe. The founding laid the foundation for qardsCOM's specialization in financial services customer communication.
• Lufthansa AirPlus Servicekarten GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1998Lufthansa AirPlus Servicekarten GmbH was one of two founding partners (alongside Bayern Card-Services GmbH) when CommuniGate Kommunikationsservice GmbH was established in 1998. AirPlus provides corporate travel and payment solutions. The founding established qardsCOM's capabilities in both airline financial services and general banking customer dialogue.
• qards GmbHcoreOthersqardsCOM GmbH is today 100% owned by qards GmbH. qards GmbH is the parent company and operates the qards brand for card management and related financial services. qardsCOM operates as a wholly-owned subsidiary providing the customer communication services layer for the qards group.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Bosch Service Solutions: Bosch Service Solutions is the BPO subsidiary of the Bosch Group with German roots, providing customer service, business process outsourcing, and security-related services to enterprise clients across multiple industries. Comparable to qardsCOM in offering B2B contact center services with strong German/European presence.
• Teleperformance: Teleperformance is the world's largest customer experience management and contact center BPO with hundreds of thousands of employees globally. It serves financial services and other regulated industries with multi-channel customer communication, directly comparable in service scope to qardsCOM but at vastly greater scale and geographic reach.
• Capita: Capita is a UK-based professional services and BPO provider with strong exposure to financial services, government, and other regulated industries. Comparable to qardsCOM in offering large-scale customer communication services across multiple channels.
• Webhelp: Webhelp is a French-origin global CX BPO with operations across many countries, recently acquired by Concentrix to form one of the world's largest CX players. Comparable to qardsCOM in offering multi-channel customer communication services to enterprise clients.
• Concentrix: Concentrix is a leading global customer experience (CX) and BPO provider that recently merged with Majorel, creating one of the largest CX players globally. Serves financial services, fintech, and banking with multi-channel customer communication services comparable to qardsCOM's offerings.
• Majorel: Majorel, now part of Concentrix following a 2023 merger, was a leading global customer experience BPO with European roots and strong German-speaking market presence. Directly comparable in offering multi-channel contact center services including to financial-services clients.
• Sitel Group (Foundever): Sitel Group (rebranded as Foundever) is one of the largest global customer experience BPO providers with operations across the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa. Provides multi-channel customer communication services comparable to qardsCOM across regulated industries including financial services.
• Transcom: Transcom is a global customer experience BPO with operations in multiple regions serving financial services, telecom, and other sectors. Directly comparable to qardsCOM in providing multi-channel customer communication services at mid-to-large scale.

Emerging players

• novomind: novomind is a Hamburg-based AI customer service technology company offering chatbots, messaging platforms, and intelligent automation for retail, financial services, and public-sector clients. An emerging adjacent player in the DACH market with potential to either compete with or complement qardsCOM's traditional contact-center operations.

Others

• Genesys: Genesys is a leading cloud-based customer experience and contact center platform provider that powers contact center technology stacks across industries including financial services. While not a BPO itself, Genesys is an enabling technology provider whose platforms underpin operations comparable to qardsCOM's service stack.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInde.linkedin.com/company/qardsgmbh
• Instagraminstagram.com/qards_gmbh/?hl=en
• Facebookfacebook.com/CommuniGate

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CommuniGate Systems