Mandatum exits Saxo Bank

Translation: Original published in Finnish on 3/10/2025 at 9:28 am EET.

Mandatum announced that it will sell all of its shares in Saxo Bank for approximately 319 MEUR. The move did not come as a surprise as Mandatum has emphasized since its IPO its intention to exit its non-strategic PE investments. The Saxo shares are the result of the partial demerger in which Mandatum acquired them from Sampo.

Purchase price met expectations

The value of the Saxo Bank shares on Mandatum's balance sheet is 302 MEUR, so the company expects to record a minor gain after transaction costs in Q1. The transaction is subject to standard regulatory approvals and is expected to be finalized before the end of 2025. After the closing, Mandatum will repay the 200 MEUR bank loan that was originally drawn to finance the Saxo shares.

The transaction will have a minor impact on our earnings forecasts, as we had estimated that the exit from Saxo would not take place until next year. However, the transaction price was roughly in line with expectations, so the announcement has no material impact on our view of the company.

Balance sheet overcapitalization increases again

Mandatum's solvency will increase significantly with the transaction, as the company estimates that its solvency ratio would have increased to 242% from a reported 210% if the transaction had been completed by the end of last year. As a result, Mandatum will again have a lot of excess capital on its balance sheet, which we expect it will distribute to its shareholders primarily in the form of dividends. The game of unwinding the balance sheet was indeed opened in connection with the financial statements release, when the company proposed to distribute a dividend for the past financial year that was significantly higher than the accumulated profit.