Finansbank - History

History

1987

• Finansbank was established by leading Turkish banker Hüsnü Özyeğin on October 26, 1987.

2000

• Finansbank established Finans Portfolio Management and Finans Real-Estate Investment Trust.
• Internet and telephone banking systems were launched, in response to the ever-increasing number of consumer banking customers.
• One of the most important investment projects of the bank, the Operations Center in Ümraniye, Istanbul, was completed in 2000.

2001

• Finansbank sold its shares in Commercial Union Sigorta and Commercial Union Hayat Sigorta to CGU International Insurance PLC. Finans Sigorta A.Ş. (Finans Insurance) was established the same year.

2002

• With the Core Banking Project completed in 2002, Finansbank fully renewed its IT systems, achieving the best technology and service quality in the Turkish banking industry.

2006

• Finansbank was active in ten countries: Turkey, Switzerland, the Netherlands, France, Germany, Belgium, Russia, Romania, Ireland and Bahrain. This earned it the title of the Turkish bank having the most extensive network in foreign countries.
• In August 2006, Finansbank sold 46% of its shares to the National Bank of Greece (NBG), the largest bank of Greece. According to the sale agreement, Finansbank continued to own its Turkey-based subsidiaries FinansLeasing, FinansInvest, Finans Portfolio Management and IBTech, as well as the foreign-based Finansbank Malta, while Fiba Holding assumed the control of all other activities abroad, including banking activities in the Netherlands, Switzerland, Russia and Romania.

National Bank of Greece

Founded in 1841, NBG is the largest and oldest bank of Greece. Its shares have been traded on the Athens Stock Exchange since 1880, and on the New York Stock Exchange since 1999. Having a market capitalization around 16 billion dollars, NBG operates 568 branches in Greece. Excluding Greece and Turkey, the bank is active in another twelve countries, where it controls seven banks and nineteen financial institutions. The bank is known as an active player especially in Southeast Europe and Eastern Mediterranean. 46.2% of its shares are held by foreign institutional and private investors. The remaining shares are owned by local institutional and private investors, certain local pension funds and public institutions in Greece. The merger combines NBG's leading position in Southeast Europe with Finansbank's high growth potential in Turkey. The resulting synergy is expected to drive growth and profitability.