Norway's largest bank is seizing, as expected, a chance to take over Bodoe-based NordlandsBanken. Den norske Bank (DnB) said Friday it will pay just over NOK 1 billion to buy the tradition-rich bank in northern Norway, which was paralysed by huge losses.
DnB had been widely tipped as the most likely candidate to take over NordlandsBanken, the receivables finance company which earlier this week disclosed a whopping NOK 804 million in losses.
NordlandsBanken's financial crisis was largely pegged to loans it had made to Oslo-based Finance Credit, which is at the centre of a widening financial scandal.
Businesses, customers and politicians in northern Norway had made efforts to bail out NordlandsBanken and keep the bank in local hands. They tried to finance their own bid, to fend off a takeover from potential buyers they feared might not understand local banking needs.
