Nordea Bank Abp

Societe Generale is gearing up to launch the sale of its asset management arm Lyxor as the French lender seeks to shore up its finances after two consecutive quarterly losses, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Societe Generale <SOGN.PA> is gearing up to launch the sale of its asset management arm Lyxor as the French lender seeks to shore up its finances after two consecutive quarterly losses, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

European equity markets closed lower on Friday, with travel, banking and auto shares leading declines as a resurgence in coronavirus cases across the continent rekindled fears about the pandemic's impact on a nascent economic recovery.

Sweden's government on Thursday proposed a new "risk tax" for major banks to bolster public coffers should there ever be a repeat of the 2008 financial crisis.

More than 360 billion euros ($425 billion) of loans at Europe's biggest banks have been subject to payment breaks or other coronavirus relief measures but the big question is whether borrowers will be able to resume payments when support ends.

Demand for mortgages in Norway rose significantly in the second quarter, a sharp turnaround from earlier this year amid lower interest rates that drove an upturn in the housing market, a quarterly central bank survey showed on Thursday.

British motor insurer Hastings <HSTG.L> has agreed to be bought by Finland's Sampo <SAMPO.HE> and South Africa's Rand Merchant Investment (RMI) <RMIJ.J> in a cash deal valuing it at 1.66 billion pounds ($2.2 billion), the insurers said on Wednesday.

Finnish financial group Sampo reported a 19% drop in second-quarter pretax profit on Wednesday but said it had reversed the March to April drop in the market value of its investment assets.

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* Nordea expects 2020 loan losses to be below 1 billion euros

The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals were reported by 2000 GMT on Monday:

Nordic banking group Nordea said on Monday it has agreed to acquire the occupational and individual pension portfolios from Frende Livsforsikring AS for an undisclosed sum.

Nordic banking group Nordea said on Monday it has agreed to acquire the occupational and individual pension portfolios from Frende Livsforsikring AS for an undisclosed sum.

Sweden's Debt Office will ask the government to change the way the fee banks pay for the state to guarantee depositors' cash is calculated so risk levels at financial firms can be reflected more accurately, it said on Monday.

Seven major European investment firms told Reuters they will divest from beef producers, grains traders and even government bonds in Brazil if they do not see progress in resolving the surging destruction of the Amazon rainforest.

Nordea Bank would be able to pay a 0.4 euros per share dividend this autumn but will follow any instructions from the European Central Bank, the chairman of the Nordic region's biggest bank said in a newspaper interview.

Nordea Bank is ready for "the storms" thanks to its strong capital position, Chief Executive Frank Vang-Jensen said in a video address to shareholders published late on Thursday.

Finland's number of unemployed jobseekers nearly doubled in April to 433,100 from 229,700 a year earlier, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment said on Wednesday.

* Credit losses could reach 3% of lending if economy dives-c.bank