Danske Bank

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Danske Bank A/S
Type Public (OMXDANSKE)
Founded 1871
Headquarters Copenhagen, Denmark
Key people Alf Duch-Pedersen (Chairman of the board), Peter Straarup (CEO)
Industry Finance
Products Financial services
Profit DKK 14.87 billion (2007)[1]
Total assets DKK 3,349 billion (2007)[1]
Employees 23,600 (2007)[1]
Subsidiaries Fokus, National Irish Bank, Northern Bank, Sampo, Östgöta Enskilda
Website www.danskebank.com
Danske Bank building at Kongens Nytorv in Copenhagen.
Danske Bank building at Kongens Nytorv in Copenhagen.

Danske Bank is a Danish bank. It was founded 5 October 1871 as Den Danske Landmandsbank, Hypothek- og Vexelbank i Kjøbenhavn (The Danish Farmers' Bank, Mortgage and Exchange Bank of Copenhagen).

Danske Bank has long been one of the largest banks in Denmark, roughly 30 percent market share, but after the acquisition of BG Bank now hold over 51 percent. Since the mid-1990s it has been expanding its operations outside of the country. In Norway it's known as Fokus Bank and in Sweden under a variety of brand names, including Östgöta Enskilda Bank. The reasons for this expansion are rooted in the increasing deregulation and internationalization of the banking sector.


The Group was created out of several mergers, the first in 1990 with rivals Handelsbanken (Not afiliated with present day Handelsbanken) and Provinsbanken. That was followed by the acquisition of Danica in 1995 (renamed Danica Pension) in 1999, and a merger with BG Bank and Realkredit Danmark in 2001. 2005 saw the purchase of Northern Bank in Northern Ireland and National Irish Bank in the Republic of Ireland from the National Australia Bank, the Group's first retail operations outside Scandinavia. In 2006, Danske Bank bought the banking operations of the Finnish financial services group Sampo, which included retail banks in Finland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, along with a corporate entity in Russia. The Group also maintains corporate service branches in Hamburg, Poland and London, and an outpost serving high net worth clients in Luxembourg.

Danske runs all of its operations on a single IT platform, a competitive advantage since customers can quickly transfer money between a number of countries with minimal fees.

[edit] Local Operations

The Danske Bank group operates a number of local banks around the Nordic Region as well as in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, Outlined below are countries where the Danske Bank group runs retail operations [2]

Flag of Denmark Danske Bank

  • Branches: 592
  • Employees: 14.000
  • Customers: ?
  • Market Position: 1
  • Market Share: 50.1%

Flag of Norway Fokus Bank

  • Branches: 55
  • Employees: 1100
  • Customers: 225.000
  • Market Position: 4
  • Market Share: 5% (retail) 8% (corporate)

Flag of Sweden Östgöta Enskilda Bank Trading as:

  • Östgöta Enskilda Bank
  • Bohusbanken
  • Gävleborgs Provinsbank
  • Hallands Provinsbank
  • Närkes Provinsbank
  • Skånes Provinsbank
  • Smålandsbanken
  • Sundsvallsbanken
  • Sörmlands Provinsbank
  • Upplandsbanken
  • Värmlands Provinsbank
  • Västmanlands Provinsbank
  • Älvsborgs Provinsbank
  • Branches: 58
  • Employees: 1200
  • Customers: ?
  • Market Position: 5
  • Market Share: 7%

Flag of Finland Sampo Bank

  • Branches: 125
  • Employees: 3475
  • Customers: 1.2 mio
  • Market Position: 3 private- & 2 corporate customers
  • Market Share: 15% private- & 20% corporate business

Flag of Estonia Sampo Bank

  • Branches: 17
  • Employees: 593
  • Customers: 141.000
  • Market Position: 3
  • Market Share: 9%

Flag of Latvia Sampo Bank

  • Branches: 3
  • Employees: 61
  • Customers: 5.600
  • Market Position: 18
  • Market Share: N/A

Flag of Lithuania Sampo Bank

  • Branches: 17
  • Employees: 433
  • Customers: 85.560
  • Market Position: 4
  • Market Share: 7,1%

Flag of Ireland National Irish Bank

  • Branches: 59
  • Employees: 720
  • Customers:167.000
  • Market Position: 5
  • Market Share: 4%

Flag of the United Kingdom Northern Bank

  • Branches: 95
  • Employees: 1845
  • Customers: 415.000
  • Market Position: 1-2 (in Northern Ireland)
  • Market Share: 20% (in Northern Ireland)

[edit] References

[edit] External links