SpareBank 1 SR-Bank ASA enters strategic partnership with Swedbank for corporate market growth
SpareBank 1 SR-Bank is taking over a corporate customer portfolio of around NOK 5.6 billion from Swedbank and entering a partnership that will result in greater growth and a stronger offer for the customers.
The partnership is based on common values and intension, where the parties have ambitions for future growth. These agreements are subject to the approval of the Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway and The Norwegian Competition Authority, and consists of the following main elements:
- Improved services: The partners will work together on transnational corporate customers to ensure strong customer offers in both Norway and Sweden.
- Collaboration on growth: Together the partners will handle major corporate customers in the Norwegian market through cooperation and syndication within defined industries.
- A portfolio transfer: SpareBank 1 SR-Bank is taking over a corporate customer portfolio, consisting mostly of commercial property, maritime sector exposures and renewables, valued at around NOK 5.6 billion from Swedbank Norway.
The cooperation will boost SpareBank 1 SR-Bank’s offer for the corporate customers.
“The partnership increases our market shares in Oslo and Viken and makes us a strong participant in the corporate market. It will also mean that we can take on larger exposures, which will provide good conditions for further growth,” says CEO Benedicte Schilbred Fasmer of SpareBank 1 SR-Bank.
“Our strategic partnership with SpareBank 1 SR-Bank is based on a shared commitment for sustainable growth. Swedbank’s Norwegian branch will be leaner and more focused. The partnership and reorientation is in line with our Strategic Direction and will increase both customer value and return on equity”, says Jens Henriksson, President and CEO, Swedbank.
With exposures and obligations linked to sustainable finance and sustainable investments, SpareBank 1 SR-Bank and Swedbank will focus on capital-intensive sectors undergoing a green transition.
“Our goal is to finance and facilitate NOK 50 billion for sustainable activities by the end of 2030. This obliges us to be a driving force in the transition to a more sustainable society. Together with our customers, we can accelerate the green transition and achieve more than we could on our own as a group,” says Benedicte Schilbred Fasmer.
As part of the growth SpareBank 1 SR-Bank is seeing in the corporate market in Oslo and Viken, which will be further accelerated by the partnership with Swedbank, there will be a need for more resources. Employees of Swedbank with relevant experience can, following further dialogue, be offered a chance to join SpareBank 1 SR-Bank.
The necessary government approvals are expected to be received during the second half of 2022.
Stavanger, 15 June 2022
Contact people:
Benedicte Schilbred Fasmer, CEO – Tel.: +47 950 60 034
Tore Medhus, EVP Corporate Market – Tel.: +47 913 10 590
Inge Reinertsen, CFO – Tel.: +47 909 95 033
Øyvind Knoph Askeland, Director of Communications – Tel.: +47 922 32 639
This information is disclosed in compliance with section 5-12 of the Securities Trading Act.