Pfandbrief is 250 Years of age

• “Cabinet order” signed by Frederick the Great on August 29, 1769 the historical starting point.
• vdp President Dr. Louis Hagen: “A stable pillar of the German financial system, the Pfandbrief has repeatedly demonstrated and constantly increased its appeal through innovation and change."
• Harmonization at EU level strengthens Pfandbrief and makes for growth potential.

On Thursday of this week the Pfandbrief reaches the age of 250 years. What began with a “cabinet order” signed by Frederick the Great on August 29, 1769 has developed, down through the years, into an indispensable refinancing instrument for its issuers and an attractive investment for its investors.

“Above all else, the Pfandbrief owes its success to its dependability, stability and quality. A stable pillar of the German financial system, the Pfandbrief has repeatedly demonstrated and constantly increased its appeal through innovation and change,” Dr. Louis Hagen, President of the Association of German Pfandbrief Banks (vdp) commented.

Over the centuries the Pfandbrief has not only advanced to become one of German’s top exports in the financial world; it has also proven its reliability in times of crisis. The established refinancing instrument is the undisputed quality benchmark among covered bonds in Europe.

Even 250 years after its inception, the flagship product of the financial center of Germany is in high demand. For instance, the “green Pfandbrief” is gaining increasingly in importance in the context of sustainable financing policy. Regulation is also contributing to the positive stimuli: the finalization of the harmonization process at the European level represents a key foundation for the permanent preferential treatment of covered bonds and their growing internationalization going forward.

“With the Pfandbrief, a forward-looking and dependable financial product established itself over the years, a product that reinvents itself time again and has a promising future before it,” said Jens Tolckmitt, the vdp’s Chief Executive.

In this, the 250th anniversary year, the vdp has been paying tribute to the success of the Pfandbrief by staging a variety of events and activities with its member banks, its investors and its supporters. These will culminate in a ceremony to be held in Berlin on November 28, 2019.