Swedbank sells portion of holding in Hansapank to Bank Handlowy

Swedbank sells portions of holding in Hansapank to Bank Handlowy The leading Polish bank, Bank Handlowy - via its subsidiary, Handlowy Investments - will enter as a stakeholder in the Estonian bank, Hansapank, by purchasing 4,000,000 shares from Swedbank. The deal forms part of the aspiration of the banks involved to develop collaboration alliances within the Nordic countries and the Baltic region. Swedbank is already a stakeholder in Bank Handlowy. With the deal with Swedbank, Handlowy Investments will own 5.07 percent of the shares in Hansapank. Following the sale and the ew share issues in Hansapank, which were decided during the fall, Swedbank's ownership will be 49.98 percent. For further information, please contact: Einar Frydén, Information Manager, tel +46 8-585 916 30, 70-511 00 33 ------------------------------------------------------------ Please visit http://www.bit.se for further information The following files are available for download: http://www.bit.se/bitonline/1998/12/22/19981222BIT00480/bit0001.doc http://www.bit.se/bitonline/1998/12/22/19981222BIT00480/bit0002.pdf