Nordea announced Year-end report 2001

Sharp improvement in the fourth quarter

• Operating profit increased by EUR 240m to EUR 468m.
• Profit excluding investment earnings up 10%.
• Investment earnings up EUR 207m.

Stable result under challenging market conditions in 2001

• Total income up 3% and expenses unchanged adjusted for acquisitions.
• Net annual loan losses 0.29% against target of maximum 0.40% over a business cycle.
• Earnings per share EUR 0.53 (EUR 0.58 in 2000).
• Return on equity excluding goodwill 19.2% (19.4%).
• Dividend of EUR 0.23 per share proposed.

Significant strategic progress

• Target of 2.7 million e-banking customers achieved, new target of 3.2 million by the end of 2002.
• Accumulated merger synergies of EUR 168m have been realised by the end of 2001 – EUR 360m will be delivered by the end of next year.
• A second wave of integration programme will result in additional annual synergies of the same magnitude within a three-year period.
• In addition, estimated synergies from integrating Postgirot Bank increased to EUR 65m.
• The entire Group is now operating under one common brand.

"Having delivered promised merger synergies despite difficult market conditions the ambition is now set to harvest the full potential of working as an integrated group in order to achieve our ambitious long term goals. With a strong focus on conducting business locally we will further tap growth opportunities, streamline support processes and procedures and thereby improve efficiency and performance of the Group," says Thorleif Krarup, Group CEO of Nordea.

All report you can find here.