Nordic Business Report-November 8, 2006-Nordea to acquire majority stake in Russian bank (C)1994-2006 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD http://www.m2.com Pan-Nordic financial group Nordea AB said on Wednesday (8 November) that it has signed an agreement to purchase a 75.01% stake in JSB Orgresbank in Russia for USD313.7m. The remaining 24.99% will be split evenly between the current management shareholders of Orgresbank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). EBRD is expected to subscribe for a new issue of primary capital of USD43.7m, Nordea said. The newly formed partnership will capture growth opportunities in the Russian corporate and retail banking segments, according to Nordea. The transaction is expected to be completed by the end of the first quarter of 2007. In connection with the share purchase agreement the parties have signed a subordinated loan facility amounting to USD30m and are committed to further capital increases to support growth plans. Orgresbank is a medium-sized bank in Russia and employs 1,000 people. It currently has more than 35 branches and outlets in Russia, mainly in the Moscow and St. Petersburg area. Nordea is the leading financial services group in the Nordic and Baltic Sea area. It has 1,100 branch offices and nearly 11m customers. Nordea is listed on the Nordic Exchange in Stockholm, Helsinki and Copenhagen. One British pound (GBP) is worth approximately 1.86 US dollars (USD). ((Comments on this story may be sent to [email protected]))