Nordea, a Swedish financial services group, has signed an agreement to acquire Fionia Bank, a subsidiary bank of Denmark-based Finansiel Stabilitet, excluding the ‘bad bank’ part. The move is viewed as part of Nordea strategy to expand its market presence in the Funen region in Denmark.
Reportedly, the acquisition price is €121m (DKK 900m). Nordea takes over leases and employees in the 29 branches with over 400 employees. It acquires a customer portfolio that includes: 75,000 household customers; 9,500 corporate customers and total lending of approx €874m (DKK 6.5bn). Moreover, the bank has added that it will introduce its product offering to Fionia Bank’s customer base, operating model and plans to re-capitalise the bank.
The bank has claimed that the ‘bad bank’ has been separated out and kept by Finansiel Stabilitet. The impaired loans in the acquired portfolios are in line with the ratio in Nordea’s own Danish portfolio. However, the transaction is subject to approval from the Danish FSA and other relevant authorities.
Peter Schütze, head of Nordic banking, Nordea, said: “We have captured a unique opportunity. By acquiring Fionia we continue our growth in Denmark and get a very strong market position in the Funen region, to the benefit of both Fionia’s and Nordea’s customers and our shareholders.”
