SpareBank 1 Nord-Norge’s result for the first quarter of 2024 shows NOK 916 million before tax.
This is NOK 13 million higher than in the same quarter in 2023.
— What I am most satisfied with in the first quarter is that we are growing, while at the same time managing to reduce our costs. The costs are 105 million lower than in the fourth quarter of 2023. Otherwise, the picture is fairly similar to what we have seen in recent years. The North Norwegian business community is generally doing well. The bankruptcy figures are low and so are the unemployment figures. All in all, this probably affects our results positively, says CEO Hanne Karoline Kræmer in a press release.
The CEO believes that the low krone exchange rate still has more positive than negative consequences for the northern Norwegian economy.
— Northern Norway exports goods the world needs, both seafood and other raw materials. As long as the goods are paid for in dollars and euros, this means more money in the till for the sellers. So it cannot be understated that a low krone exchange rate is not only good for Norway. Among other things, it causes high imported inflation, because it becomes more expensive to buy goods from abroad. This puts pressure on interest rates. But in sum, the krone exchange rate is beneficial for the region, says Kræmer.
Good growth, but fraud is increasing
SpareBank 1 Nord-Norge can show growth in both the personal market and the corporate market.
–Measured over 12 months, the growth in the personal market is 3.7 per cent, and in the business market 13.8 per cent. If we look at the first quarter in isolation, the growth (annualised) is 2 and 6.4 per cent respectively, says Kræmer, adding that there are still low losses.
–We lose little money in the credit business, but have increased losses as a result of fraud. The losses occur when customers give up passwords and codes, thus fraudsters can drain their accounts. The new Financial Agreements Act means that the banks must compensate most of what the customer is defrauded. It is difficult to stop this without simultaneously removing some of the functions in online and mobile banking. These are services our customers have become accustomed to using, and it is difficult to take away parts of them. Fraud is a challenging area, and something we work tirelessly to combat, says Kræmer.
Although Northern Norwegian companies are generally doing well, Kræmer acknowledges that parts of the business world are struggling.
–Investigations we have carried out through Kunnskapsbanken (kbnn.no) show that the construction industry and parts of the retail trade in particular are having a tough time. The construction industry in particular worries me. Northern Norway initially lacked professionals in this industry, and lower activity could lead to the region losing even more. When the market picks up again, we may be in a situation where we simply do not have enough qualified labour. This imbalance can have serious consequences in the long term, Kræmer.
Bets on the private market outside the country
SpareBank 1 Nord-Norge has long had a customer portfolio also outside the country, mainly consisting of expatriate northerners. Now the investment is being strengthened.
— We see that the traditional market areas are being watered out. This is because most things today can be solved digitally, which blurs geographical boundaries. We constantly have inquiries from people who are going to buy homes further south in the country, who want to use us as a bank. These are both expatriate northerners and people with no connection to northern Norway. SpareBank 1 Nord-Norge has competitive conditions, and we attract particular attention to green loans. We have therefore established a separate team to serve customers outside the region. In this way, we can achieve profitable growth, without having to establish physical offices in the south, says Kræmer.
