On the proposal of Estonian Financial Supervision Authority, the European Central Bank granted to Coop Pank AS an additional activity license enabling the issuance of covered bonds.
The additional activity license obtained is a necessary prerequisite for the issuance of covered bonds. The actual issuance, including the timing, volume, and other conditions, will be decided by the bank based on market conditions and the bank's financing needs. According to initial forecasts, the first issuance is expected to take place in the first half of 2025. The bank will notify the market with a separate stock exchange announcement once the exact timing and conditions of the issuance are determined.
The purpose of issuing covered bonds is to diversify the bank's financing structure and stable long-term funds. If suitable market conditions are present, the bank will have the opportunity to finance additional lending activities and secure its funding on more favorable terms. More stable and favorable financing allows the bank to offer better conditions to customers and increase its market share in competition with larger foreign banks.
According to Paavo Truu, CFO of Coop Pank, the volume of Coop Pank's housing loan portfolio has grown large enough to offer the bank the opportunity to issue covered bonds.
Coop Pank, based on Estonian capital, is one of the five universal banks operating in Estonia. The number of clients using Coop Pank for their daily banking reached 203 900. Coop Pank aims to put the synergy generated by the interaction of retail business and banking to good use and to bring everyday banking services closer to people’s homes. The strategic shareholder of the bank is the domestic retail chain Coop Eesti, comprising of 320 stores.
Additional information:
Paavo Truu
CFO
Phone: 5160 231
E-mail: paavo.truu@cooppank.ee
