kreditor

A kreditor is a person or institution that is owed money or other performance by another party, known as the debtor. The claim may arise from a loan, a sale on credit, services rendered, or other contractual obligations. The creditor’s position is defined by the terms of the agreement and the applicable law, and it generally entails the right to demand payment or deliverables and to seek enforcement if the obligation is not fulfilled.

Creditors can be broadly categorized as secured or unsecured. Secured creditors hold a lien or collateral property that can be seized if the debtor defaults, such as a mortgage on real estate or a lien on equipment. Unsecured creditors have no special property protection beyond the debtor’s general assets and the contractual terms. Common creditors include banks and other lenders, suppliers and vendors, and government tax authorities.

Creditors have several remedies when a debtor fails to perform. They can seek payment through negotiation, late payment charges, or interest as permitted by contract. If needed, they may initiate legal action to obtain a judgment, enforce it, or participate in insolvency or bankruptcy proceedings. In many legal systems, claims are paid in a defined order, with secured creditors typically prioritized over unsecured ones; among unsecured creditors, preferential creditors may have precedence.

Usage notes: In Scandinavian legal practice, kreditor is a standard term for creditor; translations in English are simply creditor. The term encompasses both individual lenders and institutional creditors and is central to contract law, finance, and insolvency regimes.