Depositors Flee Swedbank

Swedish media report that confidence in Swedbank among regular Swedish bank customers is disappearing. Net withdrawals were SEK 9.5 billion, or 4.1% of total deposits at Swedbank. SEB, another bank with high exposure to the Baltic countries is also losing customers. The bank with the strongest reputation for being prudent in its lending standards, Handelsbanken, is by contrast gaining customers, and so is Nordea. However, the losses for Swedbank and SEB were far bigger than the gains for Handelsbanken and Nordea, and so total deposits fell by 0.6%. This will create more problems for Swedbank (to some extent well-deserved given its role in creating the Baltic boom which has now turned into a bust), and will at the same time have a deflationary effect on the Swedish economy.