Kaupthing Bank's results for the first nine months of 2007

Reykjavik, Iceland--November 13th 2007--Net earnings of ISK 60.2 billion (EUR 683 million)

- Shareholders' net earnings for the first nine months of ISK 60.2 billion, increasing by 31.3% compared with the same period in 2006. Earnings decreased, however, by 10.5% between periods taking into account the one-off after-tax profit of ISK 21.4 billion related to Exista in the third quarter of 2006
- Shareholders' net earnings in the third quarter of ISK 14.4 billion, increasing by 3.0% from the third quarter of 2006. Earnings decreased, however, by 59.3% between periods taking into account the one-off after-tax profit of ISK 21.4 billion related to Exista in the third quarter of 2006
- Return on equity for the first nine months of 27.5% on an annualised basis. Earnings per share of ISK 82.6
- Net interest income in the third quarter up by 59.7% YoY to ISK 20.3 billion
- Net fee and commission income in the third quarter grew by 75.2% YoY to ISK 13.4 billion
- Financial loss in Treasury of ISK 6.9 billion in the third quarter, primarily due to the decrease in the fair value of derivative contracts, bonds and asset-backed securities
- Total assets of ISK 4,889.9 billion (EUR 55.6 billion) at the end of September 2007, increasing by 27.7% at a fixed exchange rate from the beginning of the year and by 20.6% in ISK
- On 15 August 2007 the Bank signed an agreement to acquire the Dutch bank NIBC for EUR 3 billion, expected to complete by the end of the year
- The board of directors will seek approval at a shareholders' meeting to issue new shares in the Bank and to sell them in a pre-emptive rights issue during the fourth quarter 2007
- The board of directors plans to change the Bank's functional currency into the euro as of January 2008, in accordance with IFRS
- The board of directors will propose at the shareholders' meeting that the Bank's shares be redenominated in euros

Hreidar Már Sigurdsson, CEO
"Kaupthing's activities have been characterised by robust growth and we continued to strengthen our position in the third quarter. Trends in interest income and fee and commission income are most encouraging; interest income was up 60%, while fee and commission income grew by 75% in the third quarter compared with the same period last year. The international financial markets experienced considerable unrest during the quarter, but it is good to see that our strategy of risk diversification enabled us to achieve 19% return on equity during the quarter. The Bank is performing well and results were particularly strong in corporate banking and investment banking. I believe that 2007 will prove to be another excellent year for Kaupthing Bank."

Further information
For further information on the results please contact Jónas Sigurgeirsson, Chief Communications Officer on +354 444 6112 or Ólöf Hildur Pálsdóttir, Deputy Head of Investor Relations, on +354 444 6569 (ir@kaupthing.com). Information on Kaupthing Bank is also available on the Bank's website www.kaupthing.com.

About Kaupthing Bank
Kaupthing Bank offers comprehensive commercial and investment banking services to individuals, companies and institutional investors. The Bank is a leading player in all the main areas of the Icelandic financial market, and in addition to Iceland, the Bank's key markets are Denmark and the United Kingdom. The Bank focuses on the growth and development of its international activities and aims to be one of the leading investment banks in northern Europe.

Kaupthing Bank operates in twelve countries with its headquarters located in Reykjavík. The Bank's main subsidiaries are FIH Erhvervsbank in Denmark, Kaupthing Singer & Friedlander in the United Kingdom, Kaupthing Bank Sverige, Kaupthing Bank Luxembourg, Kaupthing Bank Oyj in Finland, Norvestia Oyj in Finland, Kaupthing New York, Kaupthing Asset Management in Switzerland and Kaupthing Norge in Norway. The Bank also has activities in the United Arab Emirates (Dubai) and Qatar and operates a branch in the Faroe Islands. As of 30 September 2007 the number of full-time equivalent positions was 3,190 at Kaupthing Bank and its subsidiaries.

This release was published on openPR.