Banks, Financial Services, Latvia

The capital and reserves of SEB Group in Latvia increased 11% since the beginning of the year to LVL 278.7 million at end-June.

The total amount of household loans issued by the bank increased 4% in the first six months of the year, reaching LVL 720.6 million, Purvina said.

The amount of deposits at the bank totaled LVL 1.33 billion, a 3% increase since the beginning of the year.

SEB banka President Ainars Ozols said that the first half of the year had been very important for the bank and its subsidiaries. One of the most important things that happened to the SEB Group in Latvia was the change of the logo and name as the bank, then Unibanka, and its subsidiaries in Latvia fully integrated into the SEB Group.

Ozols stressed that integration into the SEB Group made it possible for SEB in Latvia to achieve yet faster professional growth and to offer customers new international financial services.

In the first six months of the year, the number of the bank's clients in Latvia increased to 912,000, Ozols added, pointing out that residents' deposits at the bank kept growing, and the bank offers aid to up to 200 new business ideas and projects each month, which attests to Latvian companies' progress and ability to survive the current economic crisis.

The number of SEB banka Internet bank, "Ibanka", increased to 23% to 433,900, whereas the number of the "SMS banka" services grew 27% to 313,000 users.