Minister urges banks to cut fees, raise rates
Denmark’s Minister for Industry, Business, and Financial Affairs, Morten Bødskov, encourages banks to share their substantial profits with customers by lowering fees and increasing deposit interest rates. He criticizes banks for being slow to change course despite their financial success. Illustrating his point, Danske Bank reported an unprecedented profit of 21.3 billion DKK, Jyske Bank exceeded the previous two years by over 2 billion DKK, and Sydbank hit a new high with 3.3 billion DKK. Together, the country’s six largest banks, which include Danske Bank, Nykredit, Jyske Bank, Sydbank, Spar Nord, and Arbejdernes Landsbank, have amassed a total profit of 45.6 billion DKK. Bødskov notes that while some banks have modestly increased deposit interest rates, customers have yet to significantly benefit from these earnings. He also advises bank customers to demand better terms by comparing offers from various financial institutions.