Nordea to buy Norwegian bank Gjensidige

Nordea has entered into an agreement with Gjensidige Forsikring ASA to acquire all shares in the latter.

The agreement also includes a long-term strategic mutual distribution cooperation with Gjensidige in Norway, said a Nordea press release.

Gjensidige Bank is one of Norway’s leading online banks. The bank offers private individuals a suite of digital banking services, mortgages, car financing, unsecured loans and savings and investments distributed online and through a network of strong partners.

“This is a significant step for us and underlines our strategy and ambition to grow in the important Norwegian market. As the largest bank in the Nordics it is natural for us to partner up with the leading insurance company in Norway. This agreement means that many more Norwegians will get a relation to Nordea, and we fully intend to serve them to the best of our capability,” said Nordea Norway Branch Manager Snorre Storset.

“We are firmly convinced about the strategic importance of offering both insurance and financing products to our customers in Norway. Our partnership agreement with Nordea will enable Gjensidige to offer a wider range of financing products to both private and commercial customers. The agreement will also provide the opportunity to expand our customer reach through one of the leading Nordic banks with digitalisation and innovation high on the agenda. We are very pleased with the agreement and look forward to a close collaboration with Nordea going forward,” said Gjensidige CEO Helge Leiro Baastad.

Nordea acquires Gjensidige Bank for an estimated cash consideration of NOK 5,500 million (€578 million) that will be adjusted for the equity generated by Gjensidige Bank until closing of the transaction. The acquisition, which is subject to e.g. regulatory and other approvals, is expected to close in the first quarter of 2019.

The acquisition will enhance Nordea’s position as the second largest bank in Norway and adds 176,000 customers with €4,840 million customer assets (as of 31 December 2017).