The Schufa Group, Germany’s largest credit reporting agency, has announced plans to comprehensively examine its historical origins, including the experiences of its Jewish founders during the Nazi era. This initiative coincides with the company’s centennial celebration and aims to foster greater transparency.
According to Schufa spokesperson Tanja Panhans, the company intends to analyze its history through its own archival records and in collaboration with independent historians. The effort is being framed as part of a broader “transparency offensive” designed to engage with the past and validate it through an external, unbiased perspective.
The Schufa Group was established in February 1927 as the “Schutzgemeinschaft für Absatzfinanzierung” (Protection Association for Credit Financing), a name shortened to Schufa. The founders, two brothers from Berlin and a board member of the Berlin Municipal Electrical Works (Bewag), envisioned a system to facilitate credit financing. However, during the period of Nazi rule, the founders faced persecution due to their Jewish heritage, forcing them to flee Germany.
Following the Nazis’ rise to power in 1933, Walter Meyer and Robert Kauffmann were removed from their positions within the company. Kurt Meyer was dismissed as managing director in 1937 due to his Jewish faith and subsequently emigrated to Argentina. The company is now setting out on a project to meticulously research and document this challenging chapter of its history.