Nordic Investment Bank: Nordic and Baltic ministers approve NIB's 2020 results, support the Bank's coronavirus response

At its annual meeting on 26 March 2020, the Board of Governors of the Nordic Investment Bank (NIB) approved the Bank's annual report and audited financial statements. The Board, which consists of the ministers of finance, industry, business and economic affairs of the Nordic and Baltic countries, also approved the proposal that no dividend would be paid to the Bank's owner countries for the year 2020.

In 2020, NIB disbursed EUR 4,853 million in loans (EUR 2,676 million in 2019). Of this, EUR 1,470 million were Response Loans aimed at alleviating the social and economic consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic in the Nordic and Baltic member countries. The net profit for the year was EUR 165 million (EUR 182 million in 2019).

The decision not to pay dividends is part of the owners' will to maximize the Bank's response to the ongoing crisis and to show strong support for the Bank's activities. At the same time, it is recognised that NIB is a dividend-paying international financial institution. Assuming that the Covid-19 situation improves and the Bank's capital situation allows, it will be considered to pay a higher than normal dividend to member countries in 2022.

"In March 2020, NIB's Governors urged the Bank to support the member states to the widest extent possible to overcome the crisis. NIB has reacted swiftly and extended its lending by providing Response Loans to the three Baltic States and affected businesses in the region. We strongly support NIB's readiness to continue playing its counter-cyclical role in mitigating the economic effects of the pandemic and to guide the sustainable recovery in the Nordic-Baltic region," says Gintarė Skaistė, Minister of Finance of Lithuania and Chair of the Bank's Board of Governors.

Last year, NIB's Nordic and Baltic owner countries have also updated the Bank's Statutes, which came into effect on 29 July 2020. They include a new framework for more efficient capital use and liquidity management; enhanced financing capabilities and new tools for financing; improved institutional governance and more effective control of the Bank's operations. The changes add to NIB's relevance and allows the Bank to fulfil its mission to provide long-term loans for projects that improve productivity and benefit the environment more efficiently.

To learn more about NIB's activities in 2020, please visit our year in brief (https://www.nib.int/who_we_are/our_year_in_brief).

Download the NIB Financial Report 2020 (https://www.nib.int/filebank/a/1613377638/93a3a266fc787bb3e6dd86c3a2d563d3/10767-NIB_Financial_Report_2020.pdf) (PDF)

NIB is an international financial institution owned by eight member countries: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway and Sweden. The Bank finances private and public projects in and outside the member countries. NIB has the highest possible credit rating, AAA/Aaa, with the leading rating agencies Standard & Poor's and Moody's.

For further information, please contact
Mr Henrik Normann, President & CEO, at +358 10 618 001, info@nib.int
Mr Jukka Ahonen, Senior Director, Head of Communications, at +358 10 618 0295, jukka.ahonen@nib.int
Mr Vytautas Brazaitis, Communications Unit, at +358 10 618 0235, vytautas.brazaitis@nib.int