Intended merger between Collector AB and Collector Bank AB

The Board of Collector AB (publ) (“Collector AB”) announces the intention to initiate a process to merge Collector AB with its wholly owned subsidiary Collector Bank AB (“Collector Bank”). The purpose of the merger is to further simplify the corporate structure, achieve a more efficient use of internal resources and to optimize the capital position. Collector AB will through the merger be absorbed by Collector Bank, which will be the remaining entity after the merger. The operations of the Group remain unchanged. The merger is intended to be completed during the second half of 2022.

Collector has since the second half of 2019 streamlined its business and is today a bank specialized in financing solutions for corporates and private individuals, with a particular focus on small and medium sized companies. During the fourth quarter of 2019, Colligent Inkasso AB was divested and in the first quarter of 2021 the sale of Collector Ventures 1 KB was completed. The divested companies were both subsidiaries of Collector AB.

After the divestments, the rationale for Collector AB to remain as parent company within the Collector Group has ceased since all operation is carried out within Collector Bank and its branches.

To further simplify the group structure and establish Collector Bank as the new parent company, the Board intends to merge Collector AB and Collector Bank AB. A merger entails operational benefits and efficiency gains since the Collector Group will not need to publish separate financial information for both Collector AB and Collector Bank. In addition to the operational benefits, Additional Tier 1 and Tier 2 capital instruments issued by Collector Bank will be fully included in the consolidated financial situation. As per 30 September 2021, regulatory deductions on these instruments amounted to SEK 284 million. If the merger had been completed as of 30 September 2021, and the Additional Tier 1 and Tier 2 instruments had been fully included in the capital base, the capital adequacy had theoretically amounted to:
 

All operations of the Collector Group remain unchanged following the merger since all business activities are currently carried out by Collector Bank and its branches. Customers will not be affected by the merger.

The Boards of Collector AB and Collector Bank, which are constituted by the same directors, will establish a joint merger plan. The merger is conditional upon i.a. that the merger plan is approved by relevant regulatory bodies and by the shareholders at the 2022 annual general meeting. The merger is intended to be completed during the second half of 2022.

Through the merger, current shareholders of Collector AB will receive a corresponding number of shares in Collector Bank. After the merger, the shares in Collector Bank will be traded on Nasdaq Stockholm. Collector AB’s shares will be delisted, and the company dissolved. The process is automatic and shareholders in Collector AB do not need to take any action to receive shares in Collector Bank. Further information about the merger will be presented in the merger plan. A prospectus will also be made available to shareholders ahead of the annual general meeting.

For further information, please contact:
Peter Olsson, CFO
Phone: +46 73 712 04 46
E-mail: [email protected]

Madeleine Mörch, Head of IR & Communications
Phone: +46 73 712 04 52
E-mail: [email protected]

This is information that Collector AB (publ) is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact persons set out above, on 7 February 2022 at 16:30 CET.