Svenska Handelsbanken : Handelsbanken to leave Denmark and Finland

Handelsbanken has today made the decision to cease its operations in Denmark and
Finland. A process is being initiated to divest these two operations.

· Together, Denmark and Finland account for 10 per cent of the income, 13 per
cent of the costs, and 8 per cent of the operating profit within the Group.
  · The capital allocated to the operations in Denmark and Finland amounts to a
total of approximately SEK 15 billion. The common equity tier 1 capital related
to these operations amounts to approximately SEK 12 billion.

For decades, Handelsbanken has been one of the world's most successful banks,
with higher profitability, more satisfied customers and more stable finances
than the sector as a whole. The key to this success lies in the Bank's ability
to constantly change in step with our customers' expectations. Handelsbanken's
aspiration to constantly become a little bit better at meeting its customers'
demands has been a driving factor in its development since it first opened its
doors 150 years ago.

The Bank's main markets are in Sweden and Norway, as well as in the UK, where
there is an independent subsidiary bank. Together, these markets account for 91
per cent of profits. In these markets, the Bank's ambition has been to be a
leading operator in our core areas: financing and asset management.

In recent years, the Swedish operations have been strengthened by a
transformation, through which the Bank has become better able to meet its
customers' expectations, as regards digital services, online meetings and 24/7
service, and meaning that mortgage loans can be granted, and expert advice
provided, across several channels. The Bank has a strong local presence and is,
by a wide margin, the Bank with the most branches in the Swedish market. Over
the past year, this has resulted in mortgage volumes increasing by 5%, the
managed fund volume increasing by 27%, and income increasing by just over 5%.
Handelsbanken is today the largest lender among corporate banks.

The Norwegian operations have exhibited very strong performance within the
financing core business area over the past 15 years, particularly on the
corporate side. As in Sweden, this development is founded on high levels of
customer satisfaction and good cost efficiency.

In the UK, Handelsbanken has invested in the formation of an independent
subsidiary bank, with a unique offering on a market with considerable potential
- not least within Private Banking, where the Bank has been named Private Bank
of the Year for several consecutive years. The Bank has also a strong position
with further potential within corporate financing.

In Denmark and Finland, just as in the other markets, our banking operations are
characterised by customers with stable cash flows, good credit quality and high
customer satisfaction. Despite a lasting presence in these markets, the Bank's
market position remains small, and the Bank sees little opportunity to scale up
its offering without significant investment.

Nowadays, the conditions for running a profitable banking business in various
markets are hugely different from how they were when Handelsbanken originally
expended its geographical presence. The synergies become less and less potent as
new regulatory frameworks are introduced, both locally and internationally,
entailing that the Bank now needs central staff functions and infrastructure in
each market. Customers have a greater appreciation for speed in restructuring
and adapting to local conditions than they do for global products.

"From a commercial perspective, we want to have a presence in those locations
offering the best conditions for profitable growth and a strong market position.
With this decision, we are strengthening the Bank's ambitions in our primary
markets: Sweden, Norway and the UK," says Carina Åkerström, President and Group
Chief Executive of Handelsbanken.

The Bank's business in the Netherlands has demonstrated good profitability in
recent years, with a more focused offering within real estate finance and asset
management. As of 1 January 2022, the Netherlands will be a part of Capital
Markets, together with Luxembourg and New York. In addition to the Bank's
offering to its customers in the Netherlands and Luxembourg, presence in the
eurozone is also strategically important to the Bank in terms of funding.
Operations in New York will continue to be run in the same way as previously.
The Bank's presence in the USA is also of strategic consequence, as this allows
for direct access to USD funding.

For additional financial information, please refer to the interim report.

The relevant unions have been informed in all markets concerned.

Press conference for media and analysts, 20 October

Group Chief Executive Carina Åkerström presents the Bank's interim report at a
press conference for the media and research analysts tomorrow, Wednesday 20
October, at 08:30 CET. To register your participation, please email:
[e-mail] by 08:00 CET on Wednesday 20 October at the latest.
Journalists are welcome to register an interest for one-on-one interviews by
emailing [e-mail].

The presentation will be held in Swedish, with simultaneous interpretation into
English, and will be shown on handelsbanken.com/ir.

Location: Handelsbanken's head office, Kungsträdgårdsgatan 2, Stockholm.
Styrelsesalen, 3[rd]  floor.

Register at the guard on the right-hand side of the bank hall upon arrival.

For further information, please contact:

Carina Åkerström, Group Chief Executive, [phone]

Carl Cederschiöld, CFO, [phone]

Lars Höglund, Head of Investor Relations & Financial Strategy, [phone]

Viktoria Aastrup, Head of Group Media Relations, [phone]

This information is of the type that Svenska Handelsbanken AB is obliged to make
public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted
for publication through the agency of the contact person set out above, at
18:35 CET on October 19[th] 2021.
For more information about Handelsbanken, see: www.handelsbanken.com

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