Interim Report January – March 2012

  · Operating income decreased by 10 percent (+19 %) to SEK 164 million (SEK
183 m)
  · The profit after tax decreased by 33 percent (+23 %) to SEK 60
million (SEK 90 m)
  · Earnings per share decreased by 35 percent (+21 %) to
SEK 2.11 (3.23)
  · Net inflow totalled SEK 1,910 million (SEK 4,060 m),
corresponding to 3 percent (5 %) of the total savings capital at the beginning
of the year
  · The number of accounts increased by 5 percent (6 %) to 436,500
(417,200 as of 31 December 2011), and the total savings capital increased by 11
percent (5 %) to SEK 82,000 million (SEK 74,200 m as of 31 December
2011)

Comments from the Managing Director
”In terms of profit, we have not
matched last year’s record quarter, despite an improvement of 7 percent over the
previous quarter. This is, primarily, due to the fact that savings capital was
10 percent lower at the beginning of the year, compared with savings capital at
the beginning of the previous year, as a result of the fall in the stock
exchange in 2011, a lower level of activity on the market and also due to the
fact that we started the year with higher costs. During the first quarter of
2012, trading activity on the market was 13 percent lower than in the
corresponding period during the previous year, as a result of continued
uncertainty on the market, but was 18 percent higher than during the last
quarter of 2011. Lending has also declined, as a result of the uncertainty
regarding the stock exchange, and is 30 percent lower than in the same period
during the previous year. This decrease has negatively impacted net interest
items, which were further affected during the quarter by the reduction in the
repo rate. We can, however, see a positive trend in lending, which has increased
by 27 percent compared with the previous quarter, and is a sign that the
appetite for risk is slowly returning”, says Martin Tivéus, Managing Director of
Avanza Bank.
”As a consequence of the new tax regulations on endowment
insurance which came into force on 1 January 2012, the net inflow into
investment savings accounts (ISA) and endowment insurance is expected to be
significantly more evenly spread throughout the year than in previous years. We
can already see the effects in the first quarter. It is encouraging that the net
inflow is, again, beginning to increase after the low figures of the previous
quarter. Total savings capital increased during the quarter by 10 percent,
thanks to the net inflow and the positive development of the stock exchange.
Interest in the new investment savings account has been strong, with 7,220
accounts opened and SEK 1,820 million in net inflow in ISA since the launch at
the beginning of the year. We have also strengthened our long-term growth
potential during the quarter through the launch of the new exchange-traded
credit-linked note, which has been very positively received by our
customers.”
”A proposal regarding the statutory right to transfer pension
savings is expected in June, which expects it possible for Avanza Bank to
achieve the long-term goal of 15-20 percent profit growth ahead. We will,
therefore, continue to invest in Avanza Pension during the year in preparation
for a deregulated pension market, as well as investing in our new internet
presence and our IT systems. The work with building our new internet presence
and modernising our underlying systems is expected to continue until spring
2013. Despite a high rate of investment in these projects, we can see in this
quarter the result of the cost control measures we presented in the year-end
report. We have also arrested the rate of the previous year’s increase in costs
by 20 percent, through a reduction in costs of 3 percent compared with the
previous quarter. The goal to maintain an essentially unchanged level of
expenses in 2012 compared with the previous year remains.”
For additional
information:
Martin Tivéus, Managing Director of Avanza Bank, tel: +46(0)70 861
80 04
Birgitta Hagenfeldt, CFO of Avanza Bank, tel: +46(0)73 661 80 04

The
information contained in this report comprises information both that Avanza Bank
Holding AB (publ.) is obliged to provide and that it has chosen to provide in
accordance with the provisions of the Swedish Securities Market Act and the
Swedish Financial Instruments Trading Act. The information has been released to
the market for publication at 08.15 (CET) on 19 April 2012.
Avanza Bank also
publishes an Excel document containing its financial history. The information is
provided in English and is updated quarterly. The document can be accessed at
avanzabank.se/keydata.
This Interim Report is published in Swedish and English.
In the event of any difference between the English version and the Swedish
original, the Swedish version shall prevail.