Warsaw, June 10, 2025 – During June 4–6, a delegation of SME banking professionals from Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Czech Republic, Latvia, Serbia, and Ukraine participated in the Digital SME Lending Study Tour in Warsaw. The tour provided a unique opportunity to engage with Poland’s leading banks, fintechs, and technology providers to exchange best practices and explore cutting-edge developments in digital SME lending.
Key Highlights of the Study Tour:
🏦 Bank Visits:
- Bank Pekao – Recognized as the Best Digital SME Lender among Banks in 2024 by SME Banking Club. Pekao launched its digital SME lending journey two years ago.
- ING Bank Śląski (ING Poland) – A pioneer in online SME lending since 2011 and winner of the Best Digital SME Lending among FinTechs award in 2020–2021. ING Bank presented how they digitalized the lending process for house communities.
- Santander Bank Polska – Presented its streamlined digital lending process tailored for sole proprietors.
💡 Fintech Engagements:
- BizLend – A newcomer to the Polish market (present one year), now offering digital lending solutions for sole entrepreneurs and companies.
- NovaLend – Honored as the Best Digital SME Lender among FinTechs in 2024 by the SME Banking Club, showcased their digital SME lending process both for companies and sole entrepreneurs.
🖥️ Technology Providers:
- Asseco Poland and Comarch – Two of Poland’s leading tech firms supporting digital transformation in financial services.
Why Poland? According to the Digital SME Lending Study CEE 2024, Poland leads the Central and Eastern European region in digital SME lending adoption:
- 12 financial institutions (8 banks and 4 fintechs) offer fully or partially digital SME lending journeys.
- 10 of these provide a fully digital experience.
- ING Bank Poland and mBank pioneered digital SME lending processes in 2011, and have maintained fully digital SME lending processes since 2019.
- Most other institutions adopted digital lending between 2020 and 2023.
The tour underscored Poland’s role as a regional hub for digital innovation in SME finance, offering valuable insights for financial institutions across CEE looking to accelerate their own digital transformation journeys.
