International Council on Badges and Credentials

What International Council on Badges and Credentials does

International Council on Badges and Credentials (ICoBC) is a German-registered non-profit association (eingetragener Verein) founded in 2021 and headquartered in Berlin at Leibnizstr. 32, with 11-50 employees and a global footprint spanning Europe, the Americas, APAC, and Africa. Its stated mission is to foster the recognition of informal, non-formal, and formal learning through digital badges and micro-credentials, serving three primary segments: companies and employers seeking skills-based organization transformation, education and certification providers needing portable and trusted credentials, and associations and policy bodies working on interoperability frameworks such as the EUDI Wallet and ESCO/EQF/Europass alignment.

ICoBC's core product portfolio centers on the Badgau OpenBadges3/VC Server, a tiered SaaS platform (Community free, Starter €99/month, Professional €299/month, Enterprise custom) co-developed with relevantive GmbH, which issues and verifies W3C-aligned Open Badges 3.0 and Verifiable Credentials. This is complemented by the Global Seal of Quality (GQS) accreditation program built on the proprietary VRITE standard (Application €250, Audit €3,500, annual License €750), a premium Digital Credential Impact Assessment leveraging LinkedIn Talent Insights, vendor-neutral consultancy services, four-week masterclasses, an annual Symposium, and four active working groups producing reports such as the ICoBC Taxonomy/Quality Criteria and the 21st Century Skills Environmental Scan.

Revenue is generated through eight distinct streams: organizational memberships (tiered by type and size), individual memberships (€120/year), annual symposium tickets (€140-330), masterclass tuition (€180 + VAT), Badgau SaaS subscriptions, GQS accreditation and licensing fees, consultancy engagements, and the Impact Assessment add-on. The go-to-market combines community-led engagement (LinkedIn Group of 2,395+ members, four working groups) with sales-led motion (dedicated consultancy contact channels) and event-driven promotion (annual Symposium now invitation-only, eLearning Africa partnership).

Name

International Council on Badges and Credentials

Legal name

International Council on Badges and Credentials e.V.

Website

https://icobc.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

ICoBC is a Berlin-based non-profit association that develops standards, accreditation (GQS/VRITE), and a tiered SaaS credentialing platform (Badgau) to help employers, education providers, and governments implement interoperable digital badges and micro-credentials across the global skills ecosystem.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Digital Credentialing Standards and Accreditation

NAICS

Business Associations (813910), Educational Support Services (61171), Software Publishers (5132)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

Identity & Access Management (SSO/MFA) for Education (EDAFALAI)

Keywords

• Digital credential standards
• Badge accreditation services
• Verifiable credentials software
• Micro-credential assessment
• Skills taxonomy tools

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Organizational Membership: Tiered membership fees based on organization type (Education, Government/IGOs, Associations/Networks) and size. Includes benefits such as access to working groups, discounted services, and ecosystem priority listing.
2. Individual Membership: Individual practitioners, researchers, and consultants pay €120 annually. Includes voting rights, working group participation, reviewer eligibility, and access to pre-reviews.
3. Annual Symposium Tickets: Event-based revenue from annual symposiums. 2025 pricing: €140 (speakers), €260 (members), €330 (non-members). Event is invitation-only for general attendance.
4. Masterclass Programs: Educational programs on digital badges and credentials. Masterclass Lite 2023 cost €180 + VAT for 4-week course with live sessions and assignments. Includes discount options for individuals from middle/low-income countries.
5. OpenBadges3 Server (Badgau): Cloud-based credentialing infrastructure with tiered pricing: Community (free, 100 credentials/year), Starter (€99/month, 2,000 credentials/year), Professional (€299/month, 10,000 credentials/year), and Enterprise (custom pricing, unlimited credentials). Includes social impact partnerships for non-profits.
6. Global Seal of Quality Accreditation: Four-stage accreditation process: Application (€250 standard, waived for members), Audit (€3,500 standard, €2,950 for members), and annual Seal License (€750 standard, €500 for members). Independent review by trained Lead Reviewers.
7. Consultancy Services: Vendor-neutral consulting for corporations, higher education, and governments. Includes needs assessment, strategy workshops, vendor guidance, implementation support, and change management. Priority given to ICoBC members.
8. Digital Credential Impact Assessment: Premium service for GQS-accredited organizations using LinkedIn Talent Insights data. Provides analysis translating credential quality into measurable market impact for strategy, enrollment, and partnerships.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

ICoBC develops standards, accreditation programs and infrastructure for the digital badges and credentials ecosystem. It runs the Badgau OpenBadges3/VC Server as a SaaS credentialing platform, delivers the Global Seal of Quality (GQS) accreditation using the proprietary VRITE framework, provides vendor-neutral consultancy to corporations, higher education institutions and governments, and convenes the global community through an annual Symposium and four working groups.

Product overview

ICoBC operates as a standards and certification organization for the digital credentials ecosystem. Its core product portfolio centers on the Badgau OpenBadges3 Server, a multi-tiered SaaS platform for issuing and managing digital credentials, complemented by the ICoBC Global Seal of Quality (GQS) accreditation program that validates credentialing programs against international standards. The organization provides related services including Digital Credential Impact Assessment (leveraging LinkedIn data for market intelligence), vendor-neutral Consultancy, Masterclasses for professional development, and a Self-Service Starter Toolkit developed with BadgEurope. Annual Symposiums serve as the primary community engagement event, while Working Groups on 21st Century Skills and Workforce Development drive research and best practices. The ICoBC acts as a certification authority authenticating badge issuers through the Badgau platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Badgau: OpenBadges3 and Verifiable Credentials Server infrastructure platform developed by ICoBC and relevantive GmbH
• ICoBC Global Quality Standard (GQS)

Products and services

• Badgau OpenBadges3 Server A professional Open Badges 3 and Verifiable Credentials infrastructure-as-a-service platform developed in partnership with relevantive GmbH. Provides tiered plans (Community, Starter, Professional, Enterprise) for issuing, managing, and verifying digital credentials, with API access, white-labeling, LMS/LXP integration, selective disclosure, and wallet integration capabilities.
• ICoBC Global Seal of Quality (GQS) Accreditation A four-stage accreditation service (Readiness maturity check, Application & Eligibility, Audit VRITE review, annual Seal License) that validates digital credentialing programs against the VRITE standard (Value, Rigor, Impact, Trust, Experience). Independent review is conducted by trained Lead Reviewers, with member discounts on application and audit fees.
• Digital Credential Impact Assessment A premium add-on service available exclusively to GQS-accredited organizations that translates credential quality into measurable employer and learner demand metrics. Uses LinkedIn Talent Insights data to support strategy, enrollment, and partnership decisions.
• Consultancy Services Vendor-neutral consulting services for corporations, higher education institutions, and governments/NGOs implementing digital credentialing programs. Includes needs assessment workshops, strategy development, vendor-neutral technology guidance, implementation support, and change management, with priority given to ICoBC members.
• ICoBC Masterclass A 4-week educational program on digital badges, verifiable credentials, and micro-credentials covering digital identity fundamentals, practical implementation, and career pathway building. Delivered in collaboration with Digital Badge Academy and Navigatr, with digital badge certification upon completion and scholarship options for developing-country participants.
• Self-Service Starter Toolkit A step-by-step toolkit co-developed with the BadgEurope Erasmus+ project to help organizations with limited IT capabilities start and roll out digital badging and credentialing projects. Covers organizational change, user-centric design, connecting to recognition networks, and integration with broader ecosystems.
• ICoBC Annual Symposium Annual international conference in Berlin bringing together experts from corporates, education, and government to discuss digital credentials, badges, and verifiable credentials. Annual themes span industry developments, with paid tiered registration (Speakers, Members, Non-Members), invitations-only access in some editions, and sponsorship opportunities.

Quantifiable outcome

• Organizations achieving GQS accreditation receive the ICoBC Global Seal and priority indexing in ICoBC Global Skills Taxonomy Hub and Partner Wallets
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers20 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

AI capability3 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• eLearning AfricacoreGTM or Marketing PartnerICoBC is official partner of eLearning Africa (eLA) conference, extending reach into African education and training markets. The partnership provides visibility through eLA conference materials and joint promotion of skills-based economy initiatives across Africa.
• relevantive GmbHcoreTechnology or IntegrationCo-developed the Badgau OpenBadges3/VC Server, providing the technical infrastructure for credential issuance and management. relevantive also develops the badjau server used by ICoBC and supports ICoBC symposiums as sponsor.
• e-Assessment Association (eAA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint initiative on Visual Badge Taxonomy to create standardized way to communicate badge meaning and value. The eAA and ICoBC jointly issued call for submissions from designers. Submission period ended March 8, 2024.
• BadgEurope Erasmus+ ProjectminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-developed self-service starter toolkit for digital badging and credentialing, especially for organizations with limited IT capabilities. Toolkit covers organizational change, user-centric iterations, and connecting to recognition networks.
• Digital Badge AcademycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partner in developing and delivering Masterclass Lite 2023 on Digital Badges & Credentials. Expert instructors from Digital Badge Academy teach alongside ICoBC faculty.
• NavigatrcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partner in Masterclass Lite 2023. Tim Riches, co-founder of Navigatr, contributes expertise on connecting learning experiences with career pathways using AI-powered badge matching.
• DS4Skills ProjectminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerICoBC supports the DS4Skills project in an Advisory Board capacity, working on creation and alignment of Data Spaces for Skills with European Commission frameworks.
• World Health OrganizationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborating on upskilling the global healthcare community through digital credentials. Support ranges from consultancy on academy credentials to non-formal and formal recognition nationally and internationally.
• Sponsors and Supporters (Symposium Ecosystem)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerRecurring sponsors include Accenture, Microsoft, LinkedIn, Speexx, Lightcast, Dataport, and relevantive. Sponsors receive logo placement, complimentary registrations, and promotional email inclusion. Sponsor prospectus available from €1,000 + VAT.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• e-Assessment Association (eAA): UK-based membership association for the e-assessment industry and a documented ICoBC strategic partner (joint Visual Badge Taxonomy initiative). Closely comparable peer association with overlapping membership and policy remit.
• Credly (Pearson): Digital credentialing platform owned by Pearson that issues, manages, and verifies digital badges and certificates at enterprise scale. Directly comparable to ICoBC's Badgau offering and serves overlapping employer and education customers.
• Accredible: Digital credentialing platform for issuing, managing, and verifying certificates and badges. Comparable to ICoBC's Badgau in product scope and target customers (education providers, training organizations, enterprises).
• 1EdTech (formerly IMS Global Learning Consortium): Global non-profit consortium that owns and develops the Open Badges 3.0 and Comprehensive Learner Record standards that ICoBC's Badgau platform and GQS accreditation are built upon. Most directly comparable standards-setting peer.
• Concentric Sky (Badgr): Provider of the Badgr open badge platform and a long-standing participant in ICoBC's symposium ecosystem. Directly comparable Open Badges infrastructure competitor with deep LMS integration via Canvas.
• Navigatr: AI-powered skills and credentialing platform co-founded by Tim Riches, who teaches in ICoBC's masterclasses. Overlapping niche focus on connecting digital credentials to career pathways using AI matching.
• Digital Badge Academy: Training partner that co-developed and co-delivers ICoBC's Masterclass programs on digital badges and credentials. Comparable as a niche digital-credential training and consulting provider.

Broad incumbents

• Coursera: Large online learning platform issuing millions of certificates, micro-credentials, and degrees. Comparable as a high-scale credential issuer in adjacent market segments; broader offering and significantly larger organization.
• Parchment (Instructure): Credential verification and digital transcript platform owned by Instructure, serving higher education institutions at scale. Comparable credentials infrastructure but with broader scope and significantly larger enterprise footprint.

Others

• European Quality Assurance Register for Higher Education (EQAR): European-level quality assurance body listing agencies that operate across the EHEA. Comparable in mission (quality assurance/accreditation for education) but operating in formal higher education rather than digital credentials.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCGMUDiU5IbTklRkd91rbuNg/featured
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/international-council-on-badges-and-credentials

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

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 International Council on Badges and Credentials