Pohjola’s non-life insurance products were cross sold with OP Bank’s banking products in 2006, which resulted in the number of joint banking/insurance customers increasing from 98,000 to 803,000.
The group launched a successful credit card campaign in association with Finnish retailer Kesko, resulting in 140,000 cards being issued in the first two months. Other new initiatives include the launch of new interest-capped products, capital-protected mutual funds and expanded online stockbroking services covering seven foreign markets.
The new product areas have not distracted OP Bank from the existing, most lucrative and fast-growing areas: asset management, private banking and consumer finance received dedicated efforts to sustain profitability and growth. In the newly integrated non-life insurance operations, the focus has been on the household segment, which provides higher profitability and lower volatility than the corporate segment.
The bank had a good 33% profit increase, stable cost-income ratio and a declining NPL ratio.
“Our group has undergone considerable change since the acquisition of non-life insurer Pohjola in September 2005,” says chief executive Reijo Karhinen. “The new OP-Pohjola Group brings together two respected Finnish brands with over 100 years of history, and a range of services and capabilities unrivalled in the Finnish marketplace. I strongly believe that we have created a customer value proposition that will give us a competitive edge for years to come.”
