Banks, Estonia, Financial Services, Good for Business

In the third quarter, the bank significantly increased the amount of loans issued and deposits made and acquired a record number of clients, Coop Pank said.

The number of Coop Pank's clients increased by 4,600 over the quarter. As at the end of September, Coop Pank had 56,300 clients, which shows a growth of 33% compared to the same period of last year.

Coop Pank's loan portfolio grew by 39 mln euros. All the financing-related lines of business contributed to the growth -- mortgages, consumer loans, business loans and leasing. By the end of the third quarter, the bank's loan portfolio reached 418 mln euros, which is an increase of 37% compared to the figures a year ago.

The bank's deposits in the same period grew by 69 mln euros and reached 478 mln euros by the end of the third quarter, having grown by 30 % over the year.

In the third quarter, Coop Pank earned a profit of 1.52 mln euros. The bank's nine-month profit was 3.9 mln euros, which is an increase of by 27% compared to the figures for the same period of last year. The greatest contributor to profit growth was greater interest income resulting from the growth of the loan portfolio.

Margus Rink, chairman of the board of Coop Pank, said that the bank was steadily displaying rapid growth for the third year in a row. "Coop Pank continues to strengthen its position on the Estonian banking market. The factors behind our growth the ever-increasing brand recognition of the bank and the general trend for giving preference to domestic banks, which is becoming more and more popular with clients. We can also see companies becoming increasingly more interested because, as a local bank, ours can process their expansion plans and make financing decisions faster. What also draws the attention of business clients to us is the interest paid on the clients' temporarily available funds," Rink said.

At the end of May, Coop Pank's supervisory board commissioned the management board to start preparations for the public listing of the bank's shares. "The preparation for the public listing of our shares is underway as scheduled, and we are currently working to bring Coop Pank's shares to the Tallinn stock exchange before the end of the year. Still, the specific issue date could be affected by the global economy situation and how stock markets respond to it," Rink said. 

Majority shares in Coop Pank, one of the five universal banks active in Estonia, belong to Coop regional consumer associations and the central association, which run a retail network consisting of 330 stores across Estonia. Coop Pank has 15 bank offices and 28 banking points across Estonia. The number of daily banking customers at Coop Pank amounted to 56,300 by the end of September.