|
The crisis in Finnish banking since the beginning of the 1990s has been a test of mettle for the OKOBANK Group and its domestic competitors. Yet the Group has succeeded in strengthening its market position as the leading provider of local and regional banking services in Finland. In both domestic lending and deposit-taking, the OKOBANK Group now accounts for 34% of all deposits in Finnmark and stands level with its new principal competitor, the recently merged Kansallis UBF Group, Merita Bank.
In 1994 Finnish banking was dominated by one major drive; the integration of the assets and business portfolio of the Savings Bank of Finland into the nation's other four major banking groups, of which the OKOBANK is one. It was a challenge for the Group to allocate Savings Bank of Finland's corporate customers to its member banks in the regions, but the co-operative group's strong corporate image allowed the operation to take place with a minimum of fuss and expense. Furthermore, a substantial number of Savings Bank's retail customers decided without being prompted to transfer their accounts to the OKOBANK Group.
The OKOBANK Group welcomed the Finnish people's decision in a referendum to join the EU at the beginning of 1995. The Group believes that the country will win both new market opportunities and greater economic stability as a result. EU membership has also brought OKOBANK important new institutional customers. After competitive tendering, the EU Commission appointed OKOBANK as its primary bank in Finland and will thus channel funds to Finnish government institutions and companies through markka- and ecu-denominated accounts at OKOBANK.
The OKOBANK Group continues to launch new banking products and services for its two main customer groups; private customers and small and medium-sized corporations. More than two million Finns regard the OKOBANK Group as their main bank. With its network of 990 bank offices throughout the country, the Group is well placed to give its retail customers personal financial advice, with increased emphasis on remote banking.
|
In 1994 OKOBANK continued to increase its expertise in international business. Particular emphasis is placed on the Baltic region around Finland; hence a new representative office was opened in Tallinn, Estonia, and was followed shortly by a similar office in St. Petersburg. Both will make it their priority to serve the Group's corporate customers.
In profile
The OKOBANK Group comprises Finland's extensive network of co-operative banks. A total of 301 local banks with 990 branches throughout the country are shareholders in the central institution OKOBANK in Helsinki, which provides them with treasury and liquidity management, international correspondent banking, capital-market business, payments and edp systems and other wholesale banking services. Subsidiaries in mortgage banking and leasing round off the range of services offered by the local member banks.
An OKOBANK branch in Stockholm and representative offices in New York, London, St. Petersburg and Tallinn link the local members to the Group and their customers to the internationally-oriented business communities in these five important markets.
|
