Lending / consumer credit · Estonia

Operating licence as a credit servicer (Estonia)

The Operating licence as a credit servicer is issued by Finantsinspektsioon (FI) under the Credit Servicers and Credit Purchasers Act. It is a national licence: it does not give a passport to other EU/EEA states. The official register lists 4 current holders. Ownership changes need the regulator's approval before completion.

Last verified 2026-09-24Regulator FIMarkdown · Data (CC BY 4.0)

At a glance

Official name	Operating licence as a credit servicer¹
Also known as	Credit servicer licence · Estonian credit servicer licence · Credit servicer operating licence
Issued by	Finantsinspektsioon
Jurisdiction	Estonia
Licence family	Lending / consumer credit
Legal basis	Credit Servicers and Credit Purchasers Act, § 6²
Passporting	Domestic only
Public register	official register¹
Current holders	4¹

What it lets you do

Lending	Granting loans, including consumer credit, mortgage credit, factoring and financing of commercial transactions.
Consumer credit	Granting or promising credit to consumers, including buy-now-pay-later, subject to consumer protection rules on information, creditworthiness and withdrawal.

Where it is valid

Valid in Estonia.

Buying a company that already holds it

Prior approval required. Acquiring or increasing a qualifying holding reaching or crossing 10%, 20%, 30%, or 50% of share capital or voting rights in an Estonian bank, payment institution, EMI, investment firm, or CASP requires prior notification and approval from Finantsinspektsioon. Filings are submitted electronically through the FI Application Portal (or via the ECB SSM portal for credit institutions). The statutory assessment period is 60 working days from receipt of complete documentation, interruptible once by up to 20 or 30 working days to request additional information, evaluating acquirer reputation, financial solidity, and AML/CFT compliance.³

Credit in other countries

Country	Licence	Regulator	Min. capital	Application fee	Statutory time
Australia	Australian credit licence (ACL)	ASIC	n/a	n/a	n/a
Cyprus	European Crowdfunding Service Provider authorisation	CySEC	n/a	n/a	n/a
Czech Republic	Non-bank Consumer Credit Provider licence	CNB	n/a	CZK 50,000	n/a
Czech Republic	Crowdfunding Service Provider authorizationCrowdfunding Service Provider authorization under ECSPR	CNB	n/a	CZK 20,000	~3 mo
Estonia	Operating licence as a credit servicer	FI	n/a	n/a	n/a
Estonia	Operating licence as a creditor	FI	n/a	n/a	n/a
Estonia	Authorisation as a crowdfunding service providerAuthorisation as a crowdfunding service provider under ECSPR	FI	n/a	n/a	n/a
Estonia	Authorisation for operating as a financial institution	FIU	n/a	EUR 3,300	~2.8 mo
Estonia	Operating licence as a credit intermediary	FI	n/a	n/a	n/a
France	European crowdfunding service provider authorization	AMF	n/a	n/a	~3 mo
Ireland	Crowdfunding Service Provider Authorisation (ECSPR)	CBI	n/a	n/a	n/a
Italy	European crowdfunding service provider authorization (ECSPR)	CONSOB	n/a	n/a	~3 mo
Latvia	Crowdfunding service provider authorization	LB	n/a	n/a	n/a
Lithuania	Crowdfunding service provider authorization	LB	n/a	n/a	n/a
Lithuania	Peer-to-peer lending platform operator	LB	n/a	n/a	n/a
Luxembourg	Crowdfunding service provider authorisation	CSSF	n/a	EUR 30,000	n/a
Netherlands	European Crowdfunding Service Provider (ECSPR) authorisationEuropean Crowdfunding Service Provider (ECSPR) authorisation under Regulation (EU) 2020/1503	AFM	n/a	EUR 200	~4.2 mo
Poland	Crowdfunding Service Provider authorizationCrowdfunding Service Provider authorization under ECSPR	KNF	n/a	n/a	n/a
Poland	Lending Institution registration	KNF	n/a	PLN 616	n/a
Slovakia	Crowdfunding service provider authorisationCrowdfunding service provider authorisation under ECSPR	NBS	n/a	n/a	n/a
Spain	European crowdfunding service provider authorization	CNMV	n/a	n/a	n/a
Spain	Specialized lending credit institution authorization	BdE	n/a	n/a	n/a
United Kingdom	Consumer Credit Full Permission Authorisation (Part 4A FSMA)	FCA	n/a	n/a	n/a

Values come from each licence's page, where every figure has its source.

Last verified 2026-09-24Author Danil Marmysh, Founder & CEO, ProtegraReviewed by Anastasia Sidorenkova, Head of Licensing, ProtegraReport an errorReference information, not legal advice.

Sources

fi.ee: supervised entities · retrieved 2026-09-24
Estonian State Gazette (Riigi Teataja) · retrieved 2026-09-24
taotlus.fi.ee · retrieved 2026-09-24

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