PRESS RELEASE
15 February 2010

On Monday, 15 February 2010, Parex banka completed the first tranche bond issue of EUR 17,680,000, and concluded relevant two-year deposit agreements worth EUR 130 million. This kind of deposit agreements with customers will improve the liquidity of the bank. The second tranche of bonds is to be organized in two months, upon the formation of the secondary bond market. To facilitate the trade of securities in the secondary market the bank has signed a contract with investment bank Morgan Stanley about the distribution of the securities in the international market.

This issue of securities is the sixth largest bond issue in the history of Latvian enterprises. 23% of the customers, who were offered the possibility, purchased the securities investing the funds to which the FCMC restrictions apply. 80% of the buyers were non-residents.

On 29 January 2010, in an extraordinary meeting of Parex banka’s shareholders a decision was made to issue bank’s debt securities for the total value of EUR 175 million with a 2-year maturity and a 5% coupon. The issue of Parex banka’s debt securities will be aimed at facilitating economically favorable and legally stable deposit restructuring. Parex banka’s major depositors who currently have limited possibilities to handle their funds were offered to acquire securities by means of their funds deposited at the bank.

To date Parex banka has accomplished five bond issues – one domestic issue (paid off in 2008), two subordinated issues (one is quoted on the NASDAQ OMX Riga Exchange), and two Eurobond issues (one of which is quoted on the London Stock Exchange, the other was paid off in 2008) – for a comparatively small total amount of EUR 330 million. Nearly EUR 110 million worth of bonds have already been paid off, with the remaining amount still circulating.

Currently, the Latvian Privatisation Agency is the majority shareholder of Parex banka, holding 73.4% of the Bank’s shares, but 22.4% are owned by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Minority shareholders hold the remaining shares.

About Parex banka:

Founded in 1992, Parex banka currently employs some 1 900 people at branches all over Latvia and offers universal banking services throughout the Baltic region, the CIS and other European nations such as Germany, Switzerland and Sweden. Parex Group companies operate across the banking, finance, leasing, asset management and life insurance sectors. Parex banka has signed up to the European Code of Conduct on housing loans.

For more information please contact:
Inga Saleniece
Corporate Communications Department
Telephone: +371 67778870 or +371 26564629
E-mail: pr@parex.lv