Some of the Oldest Financial Institutions in Norway

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Norway and other Scandinavian countries have recently become a hotbed for fintech innovation. Vipps, MobilePay and Klarna have a massive impact on payment methods in Scandinavia and globally.

Swedish Klarna is a global leader in payment solutions for online stores and other websites. Norwegian Vipps and Danish MobilePay are similar to PayPal’s Venmo – all companies making payments between persons and between stores and persons a lot easier than they used to be.

Vipps started as a part of the Norwegian bank DnB but became an independent company in 2017. DnB is one of the longest-standing Norwegian financial institutions. In this article, we will give you the history of some of them. 

DNB

DNB, short for Den norske bank (“the Norwegian Bank”), is 200 years old. Its forerunner, Christiania Sparebank, was established as early as 1822. Since then, the bank has made numerous acquisitions and mergers. DNB Bank ASA is the biggest financial group in Norway. 

The bank got part of its current name after the merger between Bergen Bank and Den norske Creditbank – two of the biggest banks in the country – in 1990. The new bank got the name Den norske Bank (DnB). 

This was not the only major bank merger that year. Sparebanken ABC, Sparebanken Østlandet, Sparebanken Buskerud, Sparebanken Vestfold and Sparebanken Østfold merged and became Sparebanken NOR. 

After numerous other mergers and acquisitions, the two banks merged in 2003 and became DnB NOR. In 2011, the bank changed to its current name, DNB. 

AS Financiering

While DNB offers multiple financial services, other financial institutions focus on a single service. AS Financiering, a company offering loans, was established in 1930. That makes it one of Norway’s oldest companies within the loan segment. Over the years, the company has worked with car loans, motorcycle loans, boat loans, caravan loans and other vehicle loans.

A recent focus has been “green car loans” – loans specially designed for electric or hybrid vehicles. Electric cars are more popular than ever, and Norwegians seem especially eager to switch from fossil fuels to electric. More than half of new cars bought in Norway are electric. Green car loans are cheaper than regular car loans, making it easier to buy an electric car. 

AS Financiering is owned by Sparebanken Øst. Sparebanken Øst is another Norwegian financial company with a long history and one of the bigger banks in the eastern part of Norway. 

Storebrand

Storebrand, with roots going back to 1767, is among the oldest Norwegian financial institutions. In fact, it is one of the oldest Norwegian companies.

The first iteration of the company was called “Den almindelige Brand-Forsikrings-Anstalt”. It was founded in 1767 in Copenhagen. Norway was a part of Denmark at this point, and a lot of development took place in Copenhagen, which was the union’s capital. The company offered fire insurance at the time. 

Storebrand has acquired and merged with multiple insurance providers over the years. Today, it offers both insurance and bank services. 

Sparebank 1 SR-Bank

SpareBank 1 SR-Bank’s roots go back to 1839. Today, it is one of the biggest banks in Norway and a part of the SpareBank 1 Group. The first bank part of Sparebank 1 SR-Bank was founded in 1839. It was a savings bank, and its customers were mainly working within fishing.  

Finnøy Sparebank, which later became SR-Bank, was founded in 1852. Over the years, many savings banks have seen the need to ally with fellow financial institutions. This happened in 1996, when SR-Bank, Sparebanken Nord Norge, Sparebanken Vest and Sparebanken Midt Norge form Sparebank 1.

Sparebank 1 SR-Bank was listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange in 2012. Other banks in the Sparebank 1 alliance are also on the Oslo Stock Exchange. 

Gjensidige

Gjensidige is another insurance company with a long history. Like Storebrand, Gjensidige started with fire insurance. Gjensidige grew and acquired other insurance companies. The company got the name Gjensidige in 1974. 

In the 2000s, the company grew and expanded from Norway to other countries, both in the Nordics and Baltics. It was listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange in 2010. In 2016, Gjensidige celebrated its 200th anniversary.

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Heather Jones
Heather Jones
Heather Jones is the Social Good reporter at Businessner, covering online stories about digital activism, climate justice, accessibility, and more. Outside Businessner, Heather is an avid film watcher, bread maker, concert goer, and California enthusiast. You can catch her writing from the comfort of her southern porch with a cup of Earl Grey tea.