Finnish banks plan no further expansion in Baltic states - Finnish banker
Finland, with 344 banks operating on its territory and 300 bank offices per 1 million inhabitants, does not plan further development of banking operations in the Baltic states, Markus Fogelholm, the managing director of the Association of Finnish Banks, said in an interview to the Lithuanian news agency ELTA.
Finland, with 344 banks operating on its territory and 300 bank offices per 1 million inhabitants, does not plan further development of banking operations in the Baltic states, Markus Fogelholm, the managing director of the Association of Finnish Banks, said in an interview to the Lithuanian news agency ELTA.
"Finnish banks plan to focus on developing their activities in the local market instead of going to other countries; this refers more to Swedish banks," Fogelholm told ELTA.
Banks from Finland have already entered Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. "Nordea", the largest bank in Finland and the Nordic region, has already opened branches in all Baltic countries, and "OP Bank", the second largest banking group in Finland, has begun cooperation with "Hansbank Group" to render its services to corporate customers in the Baltic countries. "Sampo", the third largest bank in Finland, has branches in the three countries, too.
Fogelholm also commented on the introduction of the euro. Finns, like people in other states of the euro zone, blamed the introduction of the euro for a subsequent increase in prices, he said.
Finland also has some historic parallels with Lithuania, said Fogelholm. Thirteen years ago it went through a banking crisis, the aftermath of which were very similar to those in Lithuania a few years later. The banks and government had to take the situation into their own hands for the national economy to get out of recession and increase the pace of gross domestic product growth to 6 percent and higher in 1996-1999, he said.
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"Finnish banks plan to focus on developing their activities in the local market instead of going to other countries; this refers more to Swedish banks," Fogelholm told ELTA.
Banks from Finland have already entered Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. "Nordea", the largest bank in Finland and the Nordic region, has already opened branches in all Baltic countries, and "OP Bank", the second largest banking group in Finland, has begun cooperation with "Hansbank Group" to render its services to corporate customers in the Baltic countries. "Sampo", the third largest bank in Finland, has branches in the three countries, too.
Fogelholm also commented on the introduction of the euro. Finns, like people in other states of the euro zone, blamed the introduction of the euro for a subsequent increase in prices, he said.
Finland also has some historic parallels with Lithuania, said Fogelholm. Thirteen years ago it went through a banking crisis, the aftermath of which were very similar to those in Lithuania a few years later. The banks and government had to take the situation into their own hands for the national economy to get out of recession and increase the pace of gross domestic product growth to 6 percent and higher in 1996-1999, he said.
LETA ELTA
Copyright © LETA
