UPDATE 1-Norway’s DNB in $1.3 bln deal to buy Sbanken
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OSLO, April 15 (Reuters) – Norway’s largest bank DNB has agreed to buy smaller competitor Sbanken in a deal worth 11.1 billion Norwegian crowns ($1.32 billion), the companies said on Thursday.
DNB will offer 103.85 crowns per share for Sbanken, a 29.8% premium over Wednesday’s closing price.
“The board of directors is of the opinion that the offer reflects the strong financial and strategic value of the Sbanken group and implies an attractive valuation for shareholders,” said Sbanken Chairman Niklas Midby.
“We believe that Sbanken and DNB as a combined entity will be strongly positioned to compete with the global technology leaders.”
Sbanken was established in 2000 as the first pure-play digital bank in Norway and was listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange in 2015 ($1 = 8.3984 Norwegian crowns) (Reporting by Terje Solsvik Editing by Toby Chopra and David Goodman )
