ASFAC
Portuguese Association of Specialised Credit Institutions

Consumer credit institutions, whose legal form dates back to 1989, operate within a framework of specific legal standards and are supervised by the Bank of Portugal. The nature of their activity – intermediation between sellers and buyers (businesses or private individuals), with the aim of facilitating access to goods and services – permits them to grant credit to both suppliers and acquirers. The IFIC can also discount credit securities, perform operations involving securities of this nature, provide guarantees, advance funds against credit granted to them and also provide a range of services associated with the type of financing they offer, such as credit management. 

The ASFAC (Association of Specialised Credit Institutions) is the representative organisation of the consumer credit sector and includes 31 members, 25 of which are credit institutions specialising in consumer financing and most of which are IFIC. Collectively, they make up most the market in this sector. 

Founded in 1991 with 25 associates and six subscribers, ASFAC has progressively developed its services to make them more professional, with the goal of defending the specific interests of consumer credit in the Portuguese market.

ASFAC’s determination in promoting improvement in the quality of the services provided by the IFIC and other specialised consumer credit institutions led to the establishment of an annual Training Programme in specific areas of specialised consumer credit. 

With a view to collecting and processing information on the Portuguese specialised financing market, ASFAC created a Statistics Department which discloses Indicators of Activity on a quarterly and annual basis.

The Association also actively participates in all the studies and initiatives undertaken in this domain by the Consumer Indebtedness Observatory.

The Association conducts important work regarding market and legal obligations, representing its members before the financial authorities, namely the Bank of Portugal and the Ministry of Finance.

In this domain, ASFAC has defended the application in Portugal of a legal framework similar to that which regulates IFIC activity in other European countries, so as to create equality in terms of functioning and avoid competition distortions within the single European market.

ASFAC is also responsible for representing its associates internationally at EUROFINAS (the European Federation of Finance House Associations), of which the ASFAC is a full member.

On the international scene, the Association participates with their European partners in various specialised committees, monitoring and analysing developments in the global market and making commitments considered necessary to defend the fundamental interests of Portuguese IFIC.