PSD Bank and MONTO: Setting new records together for 18 years
When PSD Bank Nürnberg began to digitize its mortgage lending processes with MONTO at the end of 2008, hardly anyone could have imagined what would come of this decision. At the time, MONTO was backed by PRO-DIRECT-FINANCE GmbH – a Berlin-based company specializing in IT solutions for property finance. Today, the company is part of the FINNOFLEET Group, with over 400 industry experts across eight locations.
18 years on, one thing is clear: this partnership has proven to be the right move for both sides. However, it cannot be gauged by growth curves alone. The experience gained together goes far beyond figures, data and facts. The beginning of this story lies in a bold decision taken in 2008.
At that time, the volume of new business stood at 115 million euros. Around 40 full-time staff processed the loan applications with a great deal of manual effort, big paper trails and numerous media breaks.
Today, PSD Bank Nürnberg is the largest PSD Bank in Germany. Its total assets amount to 4.7 billion euros, with a lending volume of 3.7 billion euros. In the 2025 financial year, new business in mortgage lending grew by 15.1 per cent.
What has happened over these 18 years is more than just a success story. It is a case study in what long-term technology partnerships can achieve.
2008: The start of a long partnership
PSD Bank Nürnberg did not simply opt for MONTO back then. It had compared several systems and providers before deliberately choosing the web-based platform.
“We explored various options and MONTO was truly the best system on the market – and it has served us very, very well.” – Helmut Hollweck, Member of the Board of PSD Bank Nürnberg
This decision required courage: a specialist software partner based in Berlin and a web-based platform were not yet the norm within the banking cooperative network in 2008. Nevertheless, the Executive Board made the decision with entrepreneurial foresight, which has paid off.
What sounds like a technical detail at first glance had far-reaching consequences. MONTO’s web-based architecture meant: no local installation, no time-consuming roll-out, no on-site servers. Staff worked via their browsers, from anywhere. What is taken for granted today was still the exception in the banking sector in 2008: at that time, most lending systems ran as locally installed software, tied to a fixed server and workstation in the office.
By 2012, the bank’s mortgage lending volume had more than tripled: from 115 to over 350 million euros. New business volume increased threefold. The upward trend continued in the following years. In 2018, the volume of mortgage lending reached its highest level to date at just under 700 million euros – more than six times the 2008 baseline.
2016: The test nobody asked for
In March 2016, the Mortgage Credit Directive (MCD) came into force. New advisory documentation, new contract forms, new mandatory information for consumers, everything had to be implemented on time. The deadline was 21st March 2016.
For many banks, this meant months of project work and external consultants.
PSD Bank Nürnberg mastered the transition together with FINNOFLEET. Just a few days after the deadline, the bank was already working with the new forms. The advisory module went live, and the digital file automatically took over the documentation.
The smooth success of such a demanding regulatory implementation was yet further proof that this partnership works.
2017: The bank as a pioneer
In 2017, PSD Bank Nürnberg became a pilot partner for faScan, FINNOFLEET’s AI-powered document processing solution. The idea had first emerged back in 2014, and systematic development began in 2015. The fact that the bank once again took the lead as a pilot partner shows, that it not only recognized the need for digitalization, but actively drove it forward through its own commitment.
Today, faScan automatically classifies over 200 different document types: proof of income, land registry extracts, energy performance certificates. What used to take up to an hour now takes less than five minutes. Fully recognized documents go through the process without any manual intervention.
PSD Bank Nürnberg was there when this technology was launched.
2020: The strategic advantage
In the spring of 2020, everything changed from one day to the next. For many banks, the first COVID-19 lockdown posed an enormous challenge, as lending systems often ran only on fixed office computers for security reasons.
For PSD Bank Nürnberg, the situation was different. MONTO was already web-based. Staff simply opened their browser, logged in and carried on working – from home, using the same processes and rules, whilst maintaining the same high standards.
What had been a technical decision in 2008 proved to be a strategic advantage in 2020.
2021–2024: The next stage of digitalization
Following several joint workshops, the customer portal went live in June 2021. Since then, customers and the bank have been exchanging documents in compliance with data protection regulations and submitting payment orders digitally, securely, directly and without any disruption to the process.
The next step followed in May 2024: the qualified electronic signature. Whilst many institutions shied away from the complexity of mortgage lending, PSD Bank Nürnberg once again took a forward-looking approach.
And once again, it became clear that where others hesitated, PSD Bank Nürnberg took the initiative and actively drove forward the digitalization of mortgage lending.
2025: The record
Financial year 2025. PSD Bank Nürnberg recently published figures that stand out in the industry:
- +15.1% to EUR 465 million – new mortgage business
- EUR 3.7 billion – total lending volume
- EUR 4.7 billion – total assets, exceeding this mark for the first time
- EUR 6 million – net profit for the year, up slightly
“Our business model has once again proven to be extremely robust.” – Helmut Hollweck, CEO of PSD Bank Nürnberg
The bank cites the market environment, product quality and the advisory expertise of its staff as the drivers behind these record figures. In the area of mortgage lending, MONTO has been the stable foundation for PSD Bank Nürnberg for 18 years.
Summary: 18 years, three crises, one record
PSD Bank Nürnberg and FINNOFLEET are linked by more than just a contract.
“I have supported PSD Bank Nürnberg for over a decade as a key account manager – through crises, regulatory changes and many joint developments. What has emerged from this is more than just a customer relationship.
It is a partnership that demonstrates what is possible when both sides are genuinely committed to working together.” – Ines Teuber, Managing Director of FINNOFLEET P-D-F GmbH.
What sounds like a marketing soundbite is, in fact, the description of a working relationship that has grown through two banking crises, a pandemic, several waves of regulation and dozens of jointly developed modules.
For us, PSD Bank Nürnberg is one of the most impressive examples of what happens when technology and trust grow together over a long period of time.
MONTO is the web-based end-to-end platform for private mortgages – a product from FINNOFLEET.