Europe’s industry leaders gather in Cologne for Leaders’ Summit

Organised by Finance Connect, the one-day summit brought together lenders, manufacturer captives, technology providers and advisors to discuss the policy, economic and technological forces reshaping the industry. The event combined keynote interviews, panel discussions and specialist streams covering equipment finance, automotive finance and emerging funding models.

The summit was supported by headline sponsor Alfa; gold sponsors Acquis, FIS and Odessa; and sponsors Exxeta, Great American Lease & Loan Insurance Services (GAIG), NETSOL Technologies, SBS and Totalsoft. The event was held in association with Invigors and The Captives Forum.

Europe under pressure

Peck outlined a sequence of overlapping disruptions that have affected global trade and European industry in recent years, beginning with pandemic-era supply chain breakdowns and the semiconductor shortages that sharply curtailed global vehicle production. This was followed by the energy shock triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, which drove inflation across Europe and forced governments to spend hundreds of billions stabilising energy markets.

More recent developments have added further volatility. Disruption to Red Sea shipping routes during the Gaza conflict placed renewed pressure on supply chains, while intensifying competition from Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers has sparked political and regulatory responses across Europe.

Peck also pointed to the geopolitical shift in relations between Europe and the United States. The Trump administration’s sweeping tariffs introduced in 2025 – with the EU facing a baseline 20% rate – and growing uncertainty about the future of transatlantic security arrangements have contributed to a more unstable global trading environment.

Just days before the summit, the situation had escalated further following coordinated US and Israeli strikes on Iran and subsequent retaliation, which briefly drove European gas prices sharply higher. While economists expect the economic impact to be manageable if the conflict remains limited, the episode underscored the speed and unpredictability of geopolitical shocks.

“These events are arriving before the previous ones have fully resolved,” Peck told delegates. “The intervals are getting shorter. The shocks are not getting smaller.”

Europe’s policy response

Peck argued that Europe’s political leadership has recognised the challenge, citing former European Central Bank president Mario Draghi’s 2024 report on European competitiveness as a turning point.

The report warned that Europe faces an existential economic challenge unless it increases investment in strategic sectors including defence, energy, digital infrastructure and advanced manufacturing, while also simplifying regulation and completing the EU’s Capital Markets Union.

Subsequent initiatives – including the European Commission’s Competitiveness Compass, regulatory simplification measures and the recently proposed Industrial Accelerator Act – represent attempts to address these challenges.

However, Peck noted that debate continues about whether the EU’s emerging industrial strategy fully reflects Draghi’s vision. While policies such as the Industrial Accelerator Act seek to strengthen domestic industry and supply chains through “Made in EU” criteria and foreign investment screening, critics argue that additional regulation and protectionism could risk undermining competitiveness.

For the asset finance sector, he said, these developments are more than abstract policy debates. Industrial strategy, trade policy and supply chain shifts will directly influence the assets that lenders finance, the markets they serve and the residual values they carry on their balance sheets.

Peck concluded on a more positive note, pointing to Germany’s recent €850 billion investment programme for infrastructure, defence and the green transition as evidence that Europe is beginning to mobilise capital at the scale required.

Europe’s policy reset sets the tone

The opening keynote saw David Betteley, Head of the Auto Finance Community at Finance Connect, interview Richard Knubben, Director General of Leaseurope, who joined remotely.

Their discussion explored the policy and geopolitical forces reshaping Europe’s operating environment for lenders, including the Industrial Accelerator Act and the potential for liquidity pressures in financial markets as economic uncertainty persists.

Knubben noted that while policymakers and industry stakeholders broadly understand the direction Europe needs to take – particularly in areas such as competitiveness, investment and the green transition – the challenge now lies in execution. Europe, he said, must drastically rethink how it builds on the foundations already established if it is to remain competitive.

He also highlighted concerns around the scale of investment being discussed at the European level. Many of the proposed policy ambitions come with expenditure expectations that, in practice, are beyond what governments and markets can realistically afford, he argued. As a result, Europe must focus on developing approaches that deliver the required transition in a way that is financially sustainable.

Leading through uncertainty

Moderated by John Rees, Head of the Equipment Finance Community at Finance Connect, the session brought together Pascal Layan, Deputy CEO of BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions; Roland Meyer, General Manager and Country Manager DACH/Poland at DLL; Zdenek Metelak, Deputy CEO of BPCE Equipment Solutions, Björn van den Berg, Director of Financial Services at Sandvik; and Wolfgang Köhne, Senior Vice President at KION Financial Services.

Panellists discussed the practical implications of policy change, market volatility and shifting regulation for credit decisions, funding strategies and residual value management.

The discussion highlighted how lenders are increasingly factoring uncertainty into funding structures and risk models, while also focusing on building operational resilience and strategic flexibility.

Equipment finance opportunities under EU priorities

Late morning sessions split into dedicated equipment and automotive streams.

The equipment finance stream explored how EU investment priorities – including industrial resilience, clean energy, digital infrastructure and strategic manufacturing – are creating new opportunities for lenders.

Speakers including Alan Petters of Dell Financial Services, Alessia Lombardo and Mark Byrne of DLL, Bo White, CEO of LIT, Kursad Terzi of Philips, Martin Series of Foxway and Richard de Keijzer of BPCE Equipment Solutions examined where policy incentives and public funding could drive capital expenditure in the coming years.

Further sessions explored the rise of as-a-service business models, examining how banks, captives and service providers are collaborating to deliver outcome-based financing solutions through platform-based ecosystems.

The stream also addressed the circular economy, discussing how regulatory changes and asset lifecycle strategies are shaping new business models in equipment and IT finance.

Automotive finance at a crossroads

In the parallel automotive finance stream, discussions centred on the challenges of financing the transition from internal combustion engine vehicles to battery electric vehicles (BEVs).

Panellists including Carlos Ribeiro, Managing Director UK & Ireland at Volvo Financial Services, examined how regulatory pressure, volatile consumer demand and rapid technological change are affecting asset risk and residual value assumptions.

A second session examined how auto finance firms are investing in technology and data to improve efficiency and meet increasing regulatory and reporting requirements.

Participants discussed the practical deployment of digital systems, automation and analytics to reduce operating costs and strengthen credit processes, while also considering the challenges around vehicle data ownership and monetisation.

Private credit and AI in focus

The afternoon programme brought delegates back together for cross-industry sessions.

Moderated by Ian Robertson of Invigors, speakers including Walter Gontarek, CEO of Channel Capital, Leon Atkins, Head of Product (Commercial Finance) at Alfa, and advisors from Alvarez & Marsal explored how structured funding facilities involving private credit are evolving across Europe.

Gavin O’Donovan, CFO of SME Finance & Leasing Solutions, also shared practical insight from his organisation’s recently completed private credit funding round, offering delegates a first-hand perspective on the process and the considerations involved in securing this type of financing.

Speakers Katrin Puettmann, CEO of FMIT Technologies, Angelika Gemmer, former executive at Mercedes-Benz, and Richard Huston, Managing Director of VAMOS, discussed how lenders are using AI to automate customer enquiries, documentation and operational workflows, while noting that more complex applications such as credit assessment remain difficult to deploy at scale.

Roundtables and networking

The summit concluded with a series of interactive roundtable discussions covering topics including geopolitical risk, the ICE-to-BEV transition, AI deployment, circular economy models, private credit, disruptive business models and fraud and regulatory risk.

These sessions sparked lively debate and cross-sector collaboration, reinforcing the summit’s goal of creating actionable dialogue among Europe’s asset finance leaders.

The closing dinner was sponsored by headline sponsor Alfa and gold sponsors Acquis, FIS and Odessa.

Bringing together senior leaders from across Europe’s asset finance ecosystem, the Leaders’ Summit Europe underscored that while Europe’s economic, geopolitical and asset finance landscape faces considerable uncertainty, it also presents significant opportunities for transformation.

Discussions throughout the day highlighted how shifting EU policy priorities, the transition from ICE to BEV vehicles, evolving funding models such as private credit, and the practical deployment of technology are reshaping the industry. The message was clear: leadership, collaboration and strategic adaptation will determine how successfully Europe’s auto and equipment finance sectors navigate the challenges — and opportunities — ahead.