Banks, Estonia, Financial Services, Markets and Companies

The aim of the acquisition is to create a new bank with a distinctly different strategy from the banks currently operating in Estonia, Inbank told the stock exchange.

The transaction will take place in two stages. As the first step, Inbank acquires 9.9995% of the shares of Krediidipank on Jan. 30 after which Coop Pank will acquire Inbank's current subsidiaries Coop Finants AS and Krediidipank Finants AS, and increase its share capital, which will bring Inbank's share in the new bank to slightly above 25%.  

Chairman of the supervisory board of Inbank Priit Poldoja said that Inbank has enjoyed very good cooperation with both Krediidipank and Coop. "The previous good cooperation is a strong foundation for success in this unique joint venture carried through with Inbank's initiative and contribution. We have knowledge and experience in the financial sector and technology, while Coop Eesti has strong customer relationships with hundreds of thousands of Estonians and more than 350 stores across the country. I believe Krediidipank is a great platform for realizing Coop's vision in the financial sector," he said.

Coop Eesti acquired 59.7% of Krediidipank's shares through the transaction. Eesti Krediidipank will continue its operations under the current name until fall 2017, after which point the enterprise will be named Coop Pank. As Inbank's strategy is to grow with its existing products and technology to new markets in Europe, in medium term perspective Inbank intends to exit its investment in Coop Pank. The Estonian Coop Pank will be headed by Margus Rink, former head of retail banking at Hansapank.

In order to carry out the transaction and support Inbank's future growth, it was decided at Inbank's shareholders' meeting on Jan. 11, 2017 to increase Inbank's share capital by 2.8 mln euros. After the capital increase, the volume of Inbank's equity is 13.7 mln euros.

Inbank started operating as a bank in April 2015, offering services via its internet bank and a large partner network. Inbank and its subsidiaries have more than 160,000 active customer contracts in Estonia.

The Russian financial group VTB owned until now 59.7% of Krediidipank. In November 2016 VTB's press service told the group was in negotiations to divest its shareholding.

Krediidipank earned a profit of 1.8 mln euros in 2015. Deposits grew nearly 29%, amounting to 267 mln euros. The growth of deposits boosted the balance sheet total, which surpassed 305 mln euros. The volume of loans increased by 2 mln euros to 153 mln euros.