Aktia Oyj - Company Announcement

Aktia Group has agreed on divestment of its ownership in Bank of Åland Plc

Helsinki, 2011-09-13 15:50 CEST (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Stock Exchange Release 13
September 2011 at  4.50 pm 

Aktia plc, Aktia Bank plc and HSb-Finance Ltd have today entered into an
agreement to divest their direct ownership, amounting to a value of approx. EUR
18.8 million, in Bank of Åland Plc to Wiklöf Holding Ab. At the same time,
Aktia plc has agreed to divest its indirect ownership in Bank of Åland,
amounting to a value of approx. EUR 3.4 million, by selling the company's share
of ownership in five associated companies owned with equal holding as Wiklöf
Holding Ab and Föreningen Konstsamfundet r.f. Buyers are Wiklöf Holding Ab and
Föreningen Konstsamfundet r.f. 

Aktia Group's direct ownership before the transactions amounts to 10.22 % of
shares and 4.24 % of votes in Bank of Åland Plc. 

The valuation of Aktia's ownership in Bank of Åland Plc has continuously been
made via the fund at fair value. Thus the transactions have no impact on the
Group's shareholders' equity, but they have a negative effect on the result of
EUR 6.3 million before tax. 

- Aktia has been a large shareholder of Bank of Åland Plc for a long time. From
the start, our ownership has been of a strategic nature, in order to explore
ways to deepen co-operation between the two companies. Despite common efforts,
we have not succeeded in finding satisfactory ways of co-operation. Therefore,
we have now decided it's time to let go of our strategic ownership in Bank of
Åland Plc, says Jussi Laitinen, Managing Director of Aktia plc. 

Implementation of the agreements is subject to the Finnish Financial
Supervisory Authority's approval of the transactions. 



AKTIA PLC



For more information, please contact:
Jussi Laitinen, Managing Director of Aktia plc, tel. +358 10 247 6210

From:
Göran Stenberg, Head of Communications, tel. +358 10 247 6590


Distribution:
NASDAQ OMX Helsinki Ltd
Financial Supervisory Authority
Mass media
www.aktia.fi


         Göran Stenberg, Head of Communications, tel. +358 10 247 6590