Fortis has acquired the German consumer finance bank Von Essen KG Bankgesellschaft, making good on a promise it made in June to move into the consumer finance sector.
“This acquisition marks a further step towards the strengthening of our presence in Germany, by far Europe’s biggest market for consumer finance,” said Jos Clijsters, CEO of Fortis Retail Banking. “Von Essen Bank is a sound and dynamic bank that will help us expand in Germany, on top of our other existing banking activities.”
Clijsters added that the German bank will be integrated into the Fortis structure and “we plan to build on the existing Von Essen Bank business by introducing a broader range of consumer finance products, including credit cards, car financing and mortgages and by diversifying our distribution channels.”
Hans Richter, who founded the bank more than three decades ago, sees the acquisition as a smart move, calling Von Essen Bank an “ideal platform for Fortis to access the German consumer finance market, while benefiting from Fortis’s strength and commitment to developing the business further and ensuring its future in a consolidating sector.”