Latvia-based Citadele Bank has agreed to acquire the majority of the mortgage portfolio owned by ABLV Bank, which is in liquidation procedure.
The mortgage portfolio includes several thousand mortgage loans with a total exposure above €170m. Citadele Bank stated that the affected customers will be informed in advance with the necessary information, including how the customers should make repayments.
The deal specifies that existing customer loan agreements with ABLV Bank will maintain their current terms until the end of the contract.
Citadele Bank management board chairman Johan Åkerblom said: “We are a Baltic bank with local footprint, and our aim is to offer the most up-to-date financial services with a unique service approach.
“The acquisition of this high-quality portfolio is another step in our growth journey and our commitment to support the local customers.
“We will be pleased to offer our new customers access to our full range of financial services and products with special terms and conditions.”
The agreement is planned to be completed in the second half of this year. ABLV Bank, AS in liquidation, liquidator Andris Kova??uks said: “One of our main aims has been to recoup the loans in order to collect the funds we need to satisfy claims of creditors.
“We are therefore pleased that one of our most valuable assets – a significant portion of our mortgage portfolio – as well as future customer service will be taken over by Citadele Bank, who also disbursed state-guaranteed compensation to ABLV’s former customers.”
Superia, an independent financial advisory firm, served as the sole financial advisor to the seller. In February 2018, the shareholders of ABLV Bank decided about voluntary liquidation of the bank. At that time, the bank’s loan portfolio was €1bn.