The SEB said the objective is to further support customer growth in the region and to simplify the corporate governance. SEB’s banking operations will continue as usual in all three Baltic countries; Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.
By changing the legal structure, SEB will utilise the strengths of three local banks in the whole region and with a consolidated balance sheet, SEB’s financing capacity will improve further.
"SEB has the ambition to provide our customers with the best advisory services and the broadest access to capital in the market. As our customers across the Baltic countries grow, we adapt to their needs. This change will deliver clear benefits to our corporate customers, as the bank will be better equipped to cater for the increasing number of long-term and large-scale projects across the Baltics," Niina Äikäs, head of Baltic Division at SEB, is cited as saying in the press release.
The new legal structure will also bring advantages to SEB’s retail customer base in the Baltics, according to the bank.
"Our customers will benefit from a simplified governance structure as it will reduce time to market for new products and solutions. SEB has a long-term commitment to the Baltic region and is determined to continue developing its business here," said Äikäs
Subject to regulatory approvals, including permissions from local financial supervisory authorities and the ECB, the new legal structure is expected to be operational by beginning of 2027.
The consolidated legal entity will be domiciled in Estonia, with branches in Latvia and Lithuania.