The Finnish Postal Bank, in Finnish Postipankki, later known as Sampo Bank (fi|Sampo Pankki), was a significant bank in Finland. Following the creation of Finland's postal savings system in 1887, it developed into an independent financial institution, and from 2000 expanded aggressively in the Baltic countries and Russia. It was eventually acquired in 2007 by Danske Bank.
In 1887, Postisäästöpankki was established as the financial arm of the national Finnish post office, which accepted deposits from the public at post offices. In 1970, it was renamed Postipankki . In 1988, it became a full-service bank, organized as a state-owned limited company.
In 1997, Postipankki absorbed Suomen Vientiluotto, and the resulting entity was rebranded Leonia Pankki. In 2000, Sampo Group acquired Leonia Pankki. Also in 2000, the group acquired Lietuvos Vystymo bankas (Lithuanian Development Bank, established in 1994) in Lithuania and Optiva Bank in Estonia.[1] Optiva had been formed in 1998 by merger of Eesti Forekspank (est. 1992), Raepank (est. 1995) and Eesti Investeerimispank (EstIB).
In 2001, Sampo's banking operations were rebranded as Sampo Bank, with reference to the Sampo, an iconic object of traditional Finnish mythology. That same year, Sampo acquired Mandatum Bank, created in 1998 by a merger of Interbank Osakepankki (established in 1988) and Mandatum & Co. (established in 1992).
In 2004, Sampo Bank acquired Maras banka, an Estonian bank established in 1996. In 2006, Sampo Bank acquired the Industry and Finance Bank (known as Profibank) in Russia.
In 2007, Sampo Group sold Sampo Bank to Danske Bank, while retaining its insurance business. At just over €4 billion, it was the largest cash acquisition to date in Finland.[2] On 15 November 2012, Sampo Bank was renamed Danske Bank after banking operations were uniformed under one brand.[3]
