OTP Bank acquires Luminor to expand into Baltic banking market

By Milan Rojan

OTP Bank has signed an agreement to acquire 100% of Luminor Holding AS, the parent company of Luminor Bank, from a consortium of private equity funds managed by Blackstone and DNB Bank ASA. The transaction has marked OTP Bank’s planned entry into the Baltic banking market while supporting DNB’s strategy to exit customer-facing banking operations in the region.

Rasmus Aage Figenschou, Chief Financial Officer at DNB, said: “Since the establishment of Luminor in 2017 and the subsequent partnership with Blackstone, we have contributed to building a strong and independent banking platform in the Baltics. The transaction has been expected to release capital and supports our continued focus on capital efficiency and disciplined allocation of resources.”

Luminor, established in 2017 through the merger of the Baltic operations of Nordea Bank and DNB, has operated as one of the region’s largest universal banking groups under the supervision of the European Central Bank. The bank has reported total assets of $18.5 billion and a net profit of $184 million for 2025.

As part of the transaction, DNB’s wholly owned subsidiary, DNB Baltic Invest AB, has agreed to sell its entire 19.95% shareholding in Luminor.

DNB has stated that it will classify its investment in Luminor as held for sale and has expected to recognise an accounting loss of approximately $99 million in the third quarter of 2026. Upon completion, the transaction has been expected to improve DNB’s Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio by around 20 basis points, with the final financial impact dependent on closing adjustments, the final transaction price and currency movements.

The acquisition has strengthened OTP Bank’s regional expansion strategy while reshaping ownership of one of the Baltic region’s leading banking groups.