Business & Money | Wednesday 22 April, 2015 2:55 pm |

Saxo Bank, the global online trading and investment specialist, has announced that it has strengthened its capital base by issuing Convertible Tier 2 Notes in exchange for EUR 46.25 million and by issuing new equity capital in the amount of EUR 31.25 million. CarVal Investors, a leading global investment fund manager with more than USD 10 billion under management, became note owners when investing in the Convertible Tier 2 and minority shareholders when subscribing shares equal to 2.5% of the share capital before this issue.

In a joint statement, Kim Fournais and Lars Seier Christensen, co-CEOs and co-founders of Saxo Bank said:

“In the process of exploring opportunities in the market, we found a combination which allows us to both issue additional capital and raise equity capital which will benefit the Bank, the shareholders, investors and clients. This framework enables Saxo Bank to not only meet potential future capital requirements, but also to consolidate our market position as a solid industry player. The investment is testament to the trust in the bank’s ability to capitalise on significant growth opportunities. We welcome CarVal Investors as new shareholders and note owners.”

The Tier 2 instrument fulfils the new European capital regulations and is subject to conversion into ordinary shares if the common equity tier 1 ratio in the Saxo Bank Group and/or Saxo Bank A/S falls below 7 per cent.

Following the issues then Saxo Bank A/S and Saxo Bank Group’s regulatory capital ratio are 22.8% and 19.0% respectively while the estimated solvency need is 13.8% and 12.8% respectively.