Verband Deutscher Bürgschaftsbanken

What Verband Deutscher Bürgschaftsbanken does

Verband Deutscher Bürgschaftsbanken e.V. (VDB) is a registered non-profit association (eingetragener Verein) founded in 1990 in Bonn and headquartered in Berlin since 2008, operating with a small secretariat of approximately 8 staff. VDB serves as the joint interest representative of 17 regional guarantee banks (Bürgschaftsbanken) and 15 Mittelständische Beteiligungsgesellschaften (MBGen) distributed across the German federal states. The association coordinates regulatory affairs, standardizes guarantee terms (Allgemeine Bürgschaftsbestimmungen — ABB Kredit 2.0, effective October 2023; ABB Leasing 2.0, effective January 2025), and represents member interests vis-à-vis federal and state governments, BaFin, and EU institutions.

The organization's core product portfolio consists of standardized guarantee frameworks rather than direct financial instruments: guarantee banks issue Bürgschaften covering up to 80% of outstanding credit amounts (enabling loans up to €1.25 million), while MBGen provide equity-like silent participations to strengthen SME balance sheets. Supporting infrastructure includes a financing portal (finanzierungsportal.ermoeglicher.de), regulatory calculators, downloadable Rückbürgschaftserklärungen, and the Premium Subsidy Model (Prämienzuschussmodell). VDB does not develop proprietary technology beyond these member-facing digital tools and operates no public API.

VDB's revenue model is exclusively membership-fee based — the association charges no commercial pricing, engages in no economic activity, and is statutorily limited to operational expenditure. Go-to-market is indirect: VDB does not sell to end SMEs; rather, the guarantee banks reach SMEs via the established Hausbanken network or the "Bürgschaft ohne Bank" direct channel, and MBGen deliver equity capital directly. End-users are German SMEs, founders (Existenzgründer), and liberal professionals (Freie Berufe) who lack sufficient collateral for conventional bank financing. The association's strategic value derives from its regulatory positioning — coordinating five-year public-private risk-sharing frameworks under which federal and state re-guarantees absorb roughly 52% of credit risk, and securing EU-level recognition (CRR, AGVO) that allows house banks to risk-weight guaranteed exposures at 30%.

Name

Verband Deutscher Bürgschaftsbanken

Legal name

Verband Deutscher Bürgschaftsbanken e.V.

Website

https://vdb-info.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Non-profit association founded in 1990 representing Germany's 17 guarantee banks and 15 Mittelständische Beteiligungsgesellschaften; coordinates standardized guarantee frameworks, public-private risk-sharing with federal and state re-guarantees, and EU representation to enable SME and startup financing.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

SME Guarantee Banking Association

NAICS

Depository Credit Intermediation (5221)

SIC

Federal & Federally-Sponsored Credit Agencies (6111)

akta.pro primary industry

National Development Banks & State Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) (BPADACAC)

Keywords

• SME guarantee banking
• Credit guarantee association
• Silent partnership financing
• SME loan guarantees
• Industry association services

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: VDB is funded through membership fees paid by its 17 guarantee banks and 15 Mittelständische Beteiligungsgesellschaften (MBGen). The association does not engage in economic or entrepreneurial activity; funds are used exclusively for statutory purposes.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Verband Deutscher Bürgschaftsbanken (VDB) is the joint interest representation of 17 German guarantee banks (Bürgschaftsbanken) and 15 Mittelständische Beteiligungsgesellschaften (MBGen). The association advocates member interests toward politics, industry, and the public, and provides shared services including standardized guarantee terms (ABB), a centralized financing portal, online calculators, regulatory guidance, and EU-level representation. Individual guarantee banks issue credit guarantees covering up to 80% of outstanding loan amounts for SMEs and founders lacking sufficient collateral.

Product overview

Verband Deutscher Bürgschaftsbanken (VDB) is an association representing 17 guarantee banks and 15 SME-oriented investment companies (MBGen) across German federal states. The organization's offerings consist of guarantee products (Bürgschaften) for loan financing up to €1.25 million, participation guarantees for MBGen equity, and digital tools including an online financing portal, various calculators (Beihilferechner, Eigenkapitalrechner, Staatlicher Anteil Rechner), standardized guarantee terms (ABB Kredit and ABB Leasing), and a quarterly newsletter. The portfolio is structured around core guarantee products supplemented by digital services and regulatory documents supporting SME financing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bürgschaften (Guarantees) Guarantee products provided by member Bürgschaftsbanken to support SME financing. Guarantees cover up to 80% of outstanding loan amounts and serve as full-value securities for house banks, enabling commercial enterprises and liberal professions to obtain credit financing they could not otherwise secure.
• Beteiligungsgarantien (Participation Guarantees) Guarantees for equity participations provided by Mittelständische Beteiligungsgesellschaften (MBGen), supported by state back-guarantees from federal and state governments. These enable MBGen to provide silent partnership capital to SMEs.
• Finanzierungsportal (Financing Portal) Online platform for submitting financing requests and guarantee orders in three simple steps: create request, submit documents digitally, receive financing offers. Allows SMEs and founders to find suitable financing and funding options.
• Allgemeine Bürgschaftsbestimmungen (ABB) Kredit & Leasing Standardized guarantee terms for credit (ABB Kredit 2.0, effective October 2023) and leasing (ABB Leasing 2.0, effective January 2025) applicable nationwide across all member guarantee banks. The ABB documents unify and modernize the terms under which guarantees are issued.
• Prämienzuschussmodell (PZM) - Premium Subsidy Model Premium subsidy model for participation guarantees, notified to and approved by the European Commission, covering state back-guarantee evaluation under AGVO (General Block Exemption Regulation) regulations for MBGen equity guarantees.
• Staatliche Rückbürgschaften und -garantien (State Back-Guarantee Declarations) State back-guarantee and back-warranty declarations (Rückbürgschaftserklärungen / Rückgarantieerklärungen) from federal and state governments, currently covering the 2023-2027 period. These declarations form the financial foundation of the guarantee system by sharing credit risk between the state and guarantee banks.
• Newsletter "Die Ermöglicher" Quarterly newsletter (4x per year) on SME-relevant financing topics from guarantee banks and Mittelständische Beteiligungsgesellschaften. Published via rapidmail email distribution.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

19 partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• AECM (European Association of Guarantee Institutions)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVDB is a member of AECM, the European Association of Guarantee Institutions, representing the interests of its members at EU level and participating in European policy development for guarantee and financing programs.
• BVK (Bundesverband Deutscher Kapitalbeteiligungsgesellschaften)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVDB represents the interests of MBGen together with the BVK (German Private Equity Association) towards government, politics, and the public.
• Bürgschaftsbank Baden-WürttembergcoreOthersOne of 17 guarantee banks in the VDB network, operating in Baden-Württemberg. Part of the collective that VDB represents and supports.
• Bürgschaftsbank Bayern / BGG Bayerische GarantiegesellschaftcoreOthersGuarantee bank and guarantee company for the Free State of Bavaria, including the BGG for equity participations.
• BBB Bürgschaftsbank zu Berlin-BrandenburgcoreOthersGuarantee bank serving Berlin and Brandenburg as a combined regional institution.
• Bürgschaftsbank BrandenburgcoreOthersDedicated guarantee bank for Brandenburg (listed separately from Berlin-Brandenburg combined institution).
• Bürgschaftsbank BremencoreOthersGuarantee bank for the state of Bremen.
• Bürgschaftsbank HamburgcoreOthersGuarantee bank for the city-state of Hamburg.
• Bürgschaftsbank HessencoreOthersGuarantee bank for the state of Hessen.
• Bürgschaftsbank Mecklenburg-VorpommerncoreOthersGuarantee bank for the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
• Niedersächsische Bürgschaftsbank (NBB)coreOthersGuarantee bank for the state of Lower Saxony (Niedersachsen).
• Bürgschaftsbank Nordrhein-WestfalencoreOthersGuarantee bank for North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany's most populous state.
• Bürgschaftsbank Rheinland-PfalzcoreOthersGuarantee bank for the state of Rhineland-Palatinate.
• Bürgschaftsbank SaarlandcoreOthersGuarantee bank for the Saarland.
• Bürgschaftsbank SachsencoreOthersGuarantee bank for the Free State of Saxony.
• Bürgschaftsbank Sachsen-AnhaltcoreOthersGuarantee bank for the state of Saxony-Anhalt.
• Bürgschaftsbank Schleswig-HolsteincoreOthersGuarantee bank for the state of Schleswig-Holstein.
• Bürgschaftsbank ThüringencoreOthersGuarantee bank for the state of Thuringia.
• Federal Republic of Germany and German States (Bund und Länder)coreOthersGovernment partners providing re-guarantees and re-bailouts that share credit risk with guarantee banks. Five-year framework agreements (currently 2023-2027) govern the risk-sharing arrangements that form the financial foundation of the guarantee system.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• AECM (European Association of Guarantee Institutions): AECM is the European-level umbrella association for mutual guarantee institutions, performing a comparable advocacy and representation function to VDB but at EU level; it is VDB's direct counterpart for cross-border guarantee policy coordination.
• Bundesverband deutscher Banken (BdB): BdB is the German private commercial banking industry association, representing member banks on policy, regulation, and public affairs; it is structurally comparable to VDB as a German financial-sector trade association, though broader in scope.
• BVK (Bundesverband Deutscher Kapitalbeteiligungsgesellschaften): BVK is the German Private Equity and Venture Capital Association, which jointly represents VDB's MBGen members towards government and the public; it is a structurally analogous trade association for SME-focused investment vehicles in Germany.
• European Association of Public Banks (EAPB): EAPB is the European-level trade association for public and promotional banks, with overlapping membership and parallel policy advocacy in the EU SME and development finance space; structurally comparable as a public-bank industry association.

Broad incumbents

• KfW (Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau): KfW is Germany's national state development bank and the dominant federal-level SME promotional lender; it overlaps in mission with VDB members but at much larger scale and with direct federal financing programs rather than guarantees.
• Deutscher Sparkassen- und Giroverband (DSGV): DSGV represents all German Sparkassen and is the largest partner and primary distribution channel for VDB member guarantees via the Hausbanken network; comparable as a German financial-sector umbrella association but with a much broader retail banking mandate.
• Bundesverband der Deutschen Volksbanken und Raiffeisenbanken (BVR): BVR represents the German cooperative banking sector, another key distribution channel for VDB guarantees; it is structurally analogous as a financial-sector trade association but covers full-service retail banking rather than guarantee-specific activities.

Others

• European Investment Bank (EIB): The EIB is the EU's multilateral development bank providing large-scale SME and infrastructure financing; while not a trade association, it is a key policy counterparty and co-financer in the European guarantee and SME financing ecosystem in which VDB members operate.

Emerging players

• European Investment Fund (EIF): EIF is the EU body providing SME guarantee and counter-guarantee instruments across Europe, directly complementary to (and partially competing with) VDB member activities in the EU SME financing ecosystem.

Regional players

• France Garantie (formerly SIAGI): France Garantie is a French mutual guarantee institution providing SME loan guarantees with a mission structurally similar to a German Bürgschaftsbank; it is the closest national peer in France and operates as a regional counterpart in the European guarantee ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/vdb_info
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• Facebookfacebook.com/vdb.info

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Verband Deutscher Bürgschaftsbanken