Sparebanken Sør
Encyclopedia
Sparebanken Sør is a savings bank
based in Arendal
, Norway
. It mostly covers the area of Agder
.
(NOK) on investments and loans to IK Start, a Kristiansand
-based football club, its operating company Start Toppfotball and the stadium Sør Arena
. The bank spent NOK 50 million on sponsorship, including purchasing the stadium name, bought shares in the company and lent money to build the stadium. In 2008, the bank as creditor
was forced to take over the stadium, and subsequently also the club. In April 2011, CEO Morten Kraft was forced to resign after the incident. The Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway
has criticized the bank for mixing its roles as creditor and investor, and for poor risk management.
Sparebank
Sparebank is a Norwegian savings bank without external owners. The Norwegian sparebanks are a separate type of juridical entity that differ from commercial banks. There are a total of 123 savings banks in Norway.- History :...
based in Arendal
Arendal
is a town and municipality in the county of Aust-Agder, Norway. Arendal belongs to the traditional region of Sørlandet.The town of Arendal is the administrative center the municipality and also of Aust-Agder county...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. It mostly covers the area of Agder
Agder
Agder is a historical district of Norway in the southernmost region of Norway, corresponding to the two counties Vest-Agder and Aust-Agder. Today, the term Sørlandet is more commonly used.-Name:...
.
History
From 2007 to 2009, the bank lost 230 million Norwegian kroneNorwegian krone
The krone is the currency of Norway and its dependent territories. The plural form is kroner . It is subdivided into 100 øre. The ISO 4217 code is NOK, although the common local abbreviation is kr. The name translates into English as "crown"...
(NOK) on investments and loans to IK Start, a Kristiansand
Kristiansand
-History:As indicated by archeological findings in the city, the Kristiansand area has been settled at least since 400 AD. A royal farm is known to have been situated on Oddernes as early as 800, and the first church was built around 1040...
-based football club, its operating company Start Toppfotball and the stadium Sør Arena
Sør Arena
Sør Arena is a football stadium located at Torsvika in Kristiansand, Norway. The all-seater has a capacity of 14,563 people, and serves as the home ground of Tippeligaen side IK Start. It was designed by Kjell Kosberg, and is architecturally similar to Aker Stadion. The venue has seen concerts by...
. The bank spent NOK 50 million on sponsorship, including purchasing the stadium name, bought shares in the company and lent money to build the stadium. In 2008, the bank as creditor
Creditor
A creditor is a party that has a claim to the services of a second party. It is a person or institution to whom money is owed. The first party, in general, has provided some property or service to the second party under the assumption that the second party will return an equivalent property or...
was forced to take over the stadium, and subsequently also the club. In April 2011, CEO Morten Kraft was forced to resign after the incident. The Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway
Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway
The Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway is a Norwegian government agency responsible for supervision of financial companies within Norway based on law and regulations from Storting, the Norwegian Ministry of Finance and international accounting standards...
has criticized the bank for mixing its roles as creditor and investor, and for poor risk management.