Awards for Excellence 2009: Finland

Best bank: Nordea Best Investment bank: Morgan Stanley

In its core market of Finland, Nordea has a roughly 30% market share of consumer lending and personal deposits and of mortgage lending. It has even higher shares of corporate business, with 36% of lending and 43% of corporate deposits. In Finland, Nordea is truly a giant among banks. However, Finland itself accounts for just 15% of the Nordea Group’s loans and 16% of profits.

Over recent years, Nordea has used its scale and diversification to increase volumes and drive down the cost-income ratio to the benefit of both shareholders and customers in its core markets.

Lending to corporate customers in Finland increased by 5% in the first quarter of 2009 on the first quarter of 2008. The payback to the bank was in higher margins, up by 25 basis points. Nordea grew its lending to Finnish households by 7% in the first quarter of 2009 over the first quarter of 2008 and strove to meet increased demand for low-risk and hedged savings products and to provide interest rate caps to Finnish households worried about the gap between low deposit rates and rising loan margins.

Morgan Stanley’s strong position in Finnish equity capital markets was cemented by its involvement in the €1.65 billion sale of Exista’s 20% holding in property and casualty insurer Sampo Oyj in October. Morgan Stanley was co-bookrunner on the disposal, which was driven by the Icelandic investment company’s domestic problems. The US house built on its M&A record in Finland during the year as well and ranked number one in the country over the past 12 months. This was, however, achieved on the basis of just one deal, the acquisition of $1.1 billion-worth of graphic paper assets from M-Real Corp by South African paper and pulp group Sappi. Morgan Stanley was exclusive financial adviser and transaction sponsor to Sappi on the deal, which was concluded in the extremely turbulent conditions immediately following Lehman’s collapse in September.