In Memory of Dr. Klaus-Peter Zeitinger – Founder and Visionary of the ProCredit Group

With deep sadness, we announce the passing of Dr. Claus-Peter Zeitinger, or CP as he was known to most of us, on 29 December 2025. He was the key founder of the ProCredit group and the person who shaped the institution into what it is today: a value-based, ethical banking group dedicated to the economic, social and environmental development of the countries in which it operates.

CP was not a conventional banker, nor did he seek to be. In fact, he would have never used the word “banker” to describe himself. More often than not controversial and always far removed from the mainstream, he challenged prevailing assumptions about what banking should be and whom it should serve. ProCredit’s identity and success was inseparable from this stance. He was headstrong, impatient with empty formalities, and openly dismissive of bureaucracy when it stood in the way of getting things done. For him, principles mattered, but so did action.

What makes the ProCredit group unique even today is the way these convictions were translated into a lasting institutional model. ProCredit was built as a banking group with a clear developmental mission, committed to transparency and long-term engagement in its markets. For decades, ProCredit banks have remained present in their countries of operation, resisting short-termism and supporting hundreds of thousands of entrepreneurs, particularly small and medium-sized businesses that form the backbone of local economies. CP felt a deep and personal bond with these entrepreneurs, recognizing in their determination to get things done, their willingness to fight adversity, the very same qualities that had defined his own life and work. 

CP believed in education, as a means to shape responsible professionals, and respectful human beings. Central to CP’s vision was his belief in people. He was a fierce proponent of meritocracy. Titles, age, nationality, and background mattered little to him compared to capacity, integrity, and drive. He empowered individuals early, often far earlier than others would have dared, placing responsibility in the hands of those he believed could carry it. Many of ProCredit’s distinctive recruitment and training policies still reflect his thinking today.

Over the years, the ProCredit group has trained and developed many thousands of banking professionals. Alumni of ProCredit now hold significant leadership positions in local banks, supervisory authorities, government institutions, and NGOs across multiple regions. In this way, CP’s influence has extended far beyond the institution itself, shaping financial sectors, standard setting and policy making in numerous countries.

Above all, CP touched lives. He challenged, encouraged, provoked, and trusted people, often simultaneously. He influenced countless lives and individuals, including those of us who write these words. Many were given opportunities that fundamentally changed the course of their professional and personal lives.

We are convinced that his legacy will endure in the ProCredit group, in its continued commitment to “the common good” as he would phrase it, to the responsible banking, and in the many people he empowered to think independently, act responsibly, and lead with conviction.

CP leaves behind an institution that remains true to its founding values and a community of people who carry these ideas forward. He will be deeply missed, but his vision lives on.