Finland’s Sampo Sells $1.7B Stake in Nordea Bank, as It Moves Ahead with Planned Exit
By Kati Pohjanpalo | May 26, 2021
The biggest shareholder in Nordea Bank Abp offloaded another chunk of its stake as it moves ahead with a planned exit from the Nordic region’s largest bank.
Sampo Oyj sold 162 million shares in Nordea to institutional investors for 8.50 euros each, equivalent to 4% of the bank, reducing its holding to 11.9%, it said on Wednesday. The sale brought in gross proceeds of almost 1.4 billion euros ($1.7 billion).
The divestment has been on the cards since November, though Sampo only made clear last week it was intending to sell the entire holding, due in part to a Finnish tax quirk. As a result, Sampo will offload all its shares in the bank within 12 months of its stake dropping below 10%.