Brief: Norway banks should pay maximum 30% of 2019-2020 profits as dividend, finmin says

Sparebank 1 Nord-Norge

20/01/2021 17:12

Jan 20 (Reuters) - Norwegian Finance Minister Jan Tore
Sanner:
    * NORWAY'S FINANCE MINISTRY SAYS BANKS SHOULD APPLY CAUTION
IN
DISTRIBUTING PROFITS IN COMING MONTHS
    * NORWAY'S FINANCE MINISTRY SAYS THERE IS STILL CONSIDERABLE
UNCERTAINTY ABOUT ECONOMIC OUTLOOK IN NORWAY AND INTERNATIONALLY
    * NORWAY'S FINANCE MINISTRY SAYS BANKS SHOULD THEREFORE, IN
LINE
WITH RECOMMENDATIONS FROM EUROPEAN SYSTEMIC RISK BOARD (ESRB),
APPLY CAUTION IN DISTRIBUTING PROFITS UNTIL 30 SEPTEMBER
    * NORWAY'S FINANCE MINISTRY SAYS PROVIDED THAT THEY APPLY
GREAT
CAUTION AND DO NOT EXCEED A CERTAIN THRESHOLD, WELL-CAPITALIZED
BANKS SHOULD NEVERTHELESS BE ABLE TO DISTRIBUTE SOME OF THEIR
PROFITS IN COMING MONTHS
    * NORWAY'S FINANCE MINISTRY SAYS BANKS WHICH, AFTER A
CAREFUL
ASSESSMENT AND BASED ON ESRB'S RECOMMENDATION, FIND GROUNDS FOR
DISTRIBUTING PROFITS, WILL KEEP TOTAL DISTRIBUTIONS WITHIN A
MAXIMUM OF 30 PER CENT OF CUMULATIVE ANNUAL PROFITS FOR YEARS
2019 AND 2020, UNTIL 30 SEPTEMBER
    * NORWAY'S FINANCE MINISTRY SAYS THIS IS CONVEYED IN A
LETTER THAT
MINISTRY TODAY HAS SENT TO FINANSTILSYNET, IN RESPONSE TO
FINANSTILSYNET'S PROPOSAL FOR SUCH A THRESHOLD OF 25 PER CENT
    * NORWAY'S FINANCE MINISTRY SAYS BANKS SHOULD IN ANY CASE
NOT
DISTRIBUTE 2019 PROFITS UNTIL ANNUAL RESULT FOR 2020 IS
DETERMINED
    * NORWAY'S FINANCE MINISTRY SAYS THRESHOLD SHOULD BE SET AT
A
SLIGHTLY MORE GENEROUS LEVEL THAN FINANSTILSYNET PROPOSAL

Source text: https://bit.ly/390QqYs
Further company coverage:  DNB.OL 

 (Reporting By Terje Solsvik)
 ((terje.solsvik@thomsonreuters.com;))