Íslandsbanki (, ) is an

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

bank A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...

with roots tracing back to 1875, formerly being the domestic part of Glitnir banki hf., but on 15 October 2008 being split from the bankrupt Glitnir and reestablished into a new independent bank. The sole operations of the bank is to manage a branch network in Iceland, with a 20%-40% market share across all domestic franchise areas. As of 2022, the bank has 12 branches around Iceland.

First Íslandsbanki

Íslandsbanki was originally created in 1990 through the merger of Alþýðubanki (Union Bank), Verzlunarbanki (Bank of Commerce) and Iðnaðarbanki (Industrial Bank). After its 2000 merger with FBA Icelandic Investment Bank, the bank was briefly renamed Íslandsbanki-FBA, but "FBA" was dropped from the name in 2002. In 2006, the bank again rebranded itself as Glitnir.

Second Íslandsbanki

The bank was re-established on 15 October 2008 under the name Nýi Glitnir ("New Glitnir") to take over the Icelandic operations of Glitnir banki hf., after the 2008-2011 Icelandic financial crisis. The name was changed back to Íslandsbanki on 20 February 2009. The name Glitnir was deemed to be unreliable after the financial collapse, and a new logo was designed based on the old Glitnir and Íslandsbanki logos. Íslandsbanki was wholly owned by the Icelandic State Treasury from 2008 until 2021. By the end of 2017, the bank had 861 full-time employees and a total amount of assets worth ISK 1.036 trillion, and its operations were divided into six business segments: ''Retail Banking, Corporate Banking, Markets, Wealth Management, Treasury and Subsidiaries & Equity Investments''. The Bank has a 20–40% market share across all domestic franchise areas, and operates an efficient branch network in Iceland. The directors, executives, and auditors of four Icelandic banks:

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, Glitnir/Íslandsbanki, and the

Central Bank of Iceland The Central Bank of Iceland (, ) is the central bank or reserve bank of Iceland. It is owned by the Icelandic government, and is administered by a governor and a seven-member supervisory board, elected by the country's parliament following ea ...

, were awarded the satirical

Ig Nobel Prize The Ig Nobel Prize () is a satirical prize awarded annually since 1991 to promote public engagement with scientific research. Its aim is to "honor achievements that first make people laugh, and then make them think." The name of the award is a ...

in Economics in 2009 for demonstrating that tiny banks can be rapidly transformed into huge banks, and vice versa and for demonstrating that similar things can be done to an entire national economy. The current

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

Jón Guðni Ómarsson Jón is an Old Norse common name still widely used in Iceland and the Faroes. According to Icelandic custom, people named Jón are generally referred to by first and middle names and those without a middle name are referred to with both first nam ...

Privatisation

In 2021, the Icelandic Government, in line with its plan, decided to begin the sell-off of Íslandsbanki in stages. In 2021, the government sold a 35% share in Íslandsbanki, with a further 22.5% being sold in March 2022. This brings the Icelandic State Treasury's share in the bank at 42.5% as of 2022.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Islandsbanki Banks of Iceland Companies based in Reykjavík Icelandic brands Companies in the OMX Iceland 10