Uhispank offers discounts to former investors

TALLINN - Uhispank announced on Sept. 28 that it would provide favorable investment opportunities to all Uhispank shareholders who sell their Uhispank shares to the bank's potential new owner, Sweden's Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken (SEB).

SEB, one of the largest financial groups in Scandinavia, made a cash offer to acquire the remaining shares in Estonia's Uhispank, Latvia's Unibanka and Lithuania's Vilniaus Bankas in the beginning of September.

SEB's take-over bid to the shareholders of Eesti Uhispank was 41 percent higher than the actual market price of Uhispank shares at the day of the announcement, at 38 kroons ($2.11) per share. Estonian business daily Aripaev reported Oct. 2, that SEB has already purchased 66.58 percent of Uhispank's shares.

Now Uhispank is offering a number of advantageous transactions to the previous shareholders of Uhispank in order to show its gratitude towards them.

"We want the relationships between us to be friendly up to the very end," said Eero Raun, head of public relations at Uhispank.

He said he did not know whether the shareholders of Unibanka and Vilniaus Bankas would be offered similar deals, because Uhispank's acceptance period for the offer started first. Uhispank's offer lasts from Sept. 11 to Oct. 20.

The former private investors of Uhispank as of Sept. 8 have offered a 6 percent monthly interest on their average monthly deposit from Oct. 1 until Dec. 31. The average in Estonia is 1 percent.

Uhispank will also offer free brokerage services with Estonian shares until the end of 2000.

The contract fees of both children and retirement insurance will have a 5 percent discount, while discounts for risk and loan insurance may reach up to 15 percent of the contract fee.

Also, the interest rates of term deposits in the amount of 50,000 to 500,000 kroons are 0.25 percent higher, deposits exceeding 500,000 kroons are 0.5 percent higher.

Raun said the shareholders of Uhispank have showed heavy interest in selling their shares. He said the final results would be announced on the value date on Oct. 27, when money is transferred to the shareholders.

Raun said that SEB is planning to de-list Uhispank's shares from Tallinn, Helsinki, Munich and Frankfurt stock exchanges.

"After that the shares of Uhispank will lose liquidity, and it will be very difficult to sell them," said Raun. "It is wise to sell Uhispank shares now," Raun suggested.