Fellesbanken
Fellesbanken was a Norwegian bank that existed between 1920 and 1985 with offices in Oslo, Norway. It was created as a central bank for the Norwegian savings banks as well as functioning as a commercial bank. It merged with Sparebanken Oslo/Akershus in 1985 to form Sparebanken ABC. It is now part of DnB NOR.
| Industry | Banking |
|---|---|
| Fate | Merged |
| Successor | Sparebanken Oslo/Akershus |
| Founded | 1920 |
| Defunct | 1985 |
| Headquarters | Oslo, Norway |
Number of employees | 661 (1977) |
| Parent | Norwegian savings banks |
History
Fellesbanken was created with two functions. First of all it was to function as a central bank for the savings banks of Norway. Originally the savings banks of Norway were all independent banks without branches, though they still had a need for central banking functions.
It was not until after World War II that it became normal for savings banks to merge and the need for such a central bank depleted. Fellesbanken was also a commercial bank, and allowed the savings banks to have such a bank. Commercial banks had certain privileges that savings banks didn't, especially within the business sector. These privileges disappeared, and by the time of their merger they were non-existent.
In the 1970s Fellesbanken established branches in Bergen, Bodø, Kristiansand, Sarpsborg, Tromsø, Trondheim and Vadsø. After the establishment of regional savings banks Fellesbanken became redundant and a competitor, and in the 1980s the bank was made a savings bank. In 1985 it merged with Sparebanken Oslo/Akershus.