Results for the first half of 2008



Straumur-Burdaras Investment Bank results for the first half of 2008
                Consolidated profit after tax € 20.8m

Chief results for the first half of 2008
*          Profit after tax was € 20.8m for the first half of 2008.
  Profit before tax amounted to € 4.3m.
*          Operating income totalled € 81.5m in the first half.
*          Client-driven income, comprising net interest and net fee
  and commissions, is up 12.0% from same period in 2007, at € 103.8m.
*          There was a loss of € 25.1m from trading and investment
  activities in the first half of 2008.
*          Operating expenses totalled € 62.0m for the first half
  2008.
*          The cost income ratio for the first half was 76.1%.
*          Earnings per share in the first half were € 0.002.
*          Return on equity in the first half was 2.7%.
*          Total assets amounted to € 6.2bn at 30 June 2008,
  decreasing by 12.7% from the beginning of the year.
*          Assets under management totalled € 1.4bn at the end of
  first half 2008.
*          The CAD ratio was 25.4% at the end of the period. The Tier
  1 capital ratio was 23.2%.
*          The Bank's liquidity position is strong with expected
  liquidity of more than 365 days.

Chief results for the second quarter of 2008
*          Loss after tax was € 1.4m in the second quarter. The loss
  before tax was € 20.2m.
*          Operating income for Q2 2008 was €15.3m.
*          Client-driven income totalled € 49.8m in Q2 2008
  comprising net interest income of € 23.9 and net fee and commission
  income of € 25.9m.
*          Net losses from trading and investment activities amounted
  to € 36.0m in Q2 2008.
*          Operating expenses continued to fall and were € 26.9m in
  Q2 2008.
*          There was a tax credit of € 18.7m in the period, including
  one-off adjustments of € 10.6m.

William Fall, CEO of Straumur"Our focus has been to manage  the Bank through difficult times,  and
we have  done so  by establishing  stable income  bases in  spite  of
volatile markets, maintaining  our capital  strength, preserving  our
liquidity, reducing our risk and significantly cutting costs. At  the
same time, we have continued to strengthen our platform and seek  new
opportunities. Losses on some trading positions in the second quarter
demonstrate how crucial it is to have diversified the business in the
way we have. They do not obscure  the progress we are making on  that
front, shown  by the  12%  year-on-year increase  in  customer-driven
revenues in the first half."


€ m                          H1 2008 H1 2007 Q2 2008 Q1  2008 Q4 2007
Client-driven income*         103.8   92.7    49.8     53.9    59.8
Operating income              81.5    240.7   15.3     66.2    56.5
Operating expenses           (62.0)  (42.3)  (26.9)   (35.1)  (46.7)
Profit (loss) before tax       4.3    191.0  (20.2)    24.4     1.4
Profit (loss) for the period  20.8    163.4   (1.4)    22.3    (0.6)
Cost to income %              76.1    17.6
Earnings per share €          0.002   0.017
Annualised ROE %               2.7    23.8
CAD %                         25.4    28.4


Further information can be obtained from:
Stephen Jack, CFO
stephen.jack@straumur.net
+44 7885 997570

Georg Andersen
Head of Corporate Communications
georg.andersen@straumur.net
+354 858 6707

Presentation in Reykjavík
A presentation will be held for shareholders and market  participants
at Hilton Reykjavík Nordica, Suðurlandsbraut 2, on Wednesday 30  July
2008. The CEO and  the CFO of Straumur  Investment Bank will  presentthe Bank's operating results  and answer questions. The  presentation
will take place in English. It  will be possible to follow events  at
the    meeting    in    real-time    on    the    Bank's     website:
www.straumur.net/webcast. Information  will  be available  after  the
meeting on  Straumur's  website,  www.straumur.com, and  on  the  OMX
Nordic Exchange Iceland's website, www.omxnordicexchange.is.

The meeting will begin punctually at 09:30 a.m. Refreshments will  be
offered beginning at 09:00 a.m.

Agenda:
09:00 Doors open and refreshments served
09:30 William Fall, CEO, and  Stephen Jack, CFO, present the  results
and respond to questions from the audience
10:30 Meeting concludes

Meeting chair: Georg Andersen, Head of Corporate Communications.

Attachments

Earnings report Q208.pdf Financial statement Q208.pdf