|
Surprise Nordic bank bid
|
 |
October 30, 1998: 6:22 a.m. ET
Sweden's Handelsbanken bids $690 million for Norway's Fokus Bank
|
LONDON (CNNfn) - Scandinavia's biggest bank, Sweden's Handelsbanken made a surprise cash offer Friday to buy Fokus Bank, Norway's largest listed commercial bank for 5.1 billion Norwegian crowns ($690 million).
Fokus bank agreed a month ago to merge with Norway's Christiania Bank and Postbanken, Norway's state-owned postal bank. The new 70 crowns-a-share offer is 10 percent higher than shareholders were to receive in that deal.
And the Handelsbanken bid is a 30 percent premium on Fokus' Thursday close. Fokus shares jumped 18 percent to 64 crowns on the news Friday. Handelsbanken rose 4.5 percent to 334 Swedish crowns.
Handelsbanken said it was confident of getting backing from more than 90 percent of Fokus shareholders, a precondition it has set for the deal.
Handelsbanken has 15 branches in Norway already, and said Friday it plans further expansion in the Nordic region.
Fokus had not responded to the bid by mid-day Friday. 
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
