Banks, Estonia, Financial Services

At the end of the second quarter of 2012, the bank’s total volume of loans and leasing contracts amounted to 1.26 billion euros while a year ago it was 1.5 billion euros. Hence the decline was 16%. “The total volume of the loans portfolio decreased, but the decline pace has decelerated,” noted the bank in its press release.

The volume of savings deposits had fallen from 1.68 billion euros to 1.42 billion euros in a year, i.e. 15%.

“The European Union and the euro area are in the midst of a debt crisis and a financial crisis where previously projected risks have become a reality and on the other hand Member States have adopted various measure complexes to overcome the crisis,” said the managing director of Sampo Bank Aivar Rehe. “The crisis will have a significant impact on the economic growth in Europe; outlooks for major European economies are deteriorating in 2012 and that will affect our exports markets and hence also the Estonian economy” he added.

Rehe noted that Estonia will continue to be highly dependent on foreign markets and that the low consumer activity level affects the economic growth. “The financial behaviour and decisions of enterprises and individuals are governed by the desire to accumulate savings and take well-calculated risks,” he said.

From June 1, Danske Bank Group operates on all of its markets under the brand name of Danske Bank. The bank will continue its current business model in Estonia, operating as a universal bank and focussing mostly on corporate banking. The updating of the brand will be completed by the end of 2012.