The NORD/LB Group has launched its first fund focussing on the financing of infrastructure projects in Europe. The Caplantic Infrastructure Debt Europe (CIDE) fund is aimed at institutional investors such as Depot A investors, insurance companies, pension schemes and pension funds and has a target volume of EUR 300 million.

NORD/LB Norddeutsche Landesbank generated earnings before taxes of € 224 million in the first six months of 2024. Compared to the first half of 2023 (€ 143 million), this represents a further increase of more than 50 per cent. Earnings after taxes also increased noticeably. As at 30 June 2024, the consolidated profit (after taxes) was € 195 million. This represents an increase of almost 80 per cent compared to the previous year's figure of € 109 million.

NORD/LB and Swedbank Estonia, the largest bank in Estonia, have announced an €87m financing package for 67.5MW of the 75MW Aidu wind farm in Estonia, jointly developed by the Sõnajalg family and Dirkshof. The Sõnajalg family and Dirkshof each own 50% of the project, which is located in the northeast of Estonia, in Ida-Viru County, and entered operation in June 2024.

NORD/LB, a leading energy transition bank, has announced €109m in financing across separate transactions for two large-scale solar farm portfolios in Poland being developed by GoldenPeaks Capital, one of the fastest-growing independent producers of green energy in Europe.

NORD/LB Norddeutsche Landesbank is financing environmentally friendly electric locomotives and night train carriages (sleeping, couchette and seating carriages) for RDC Asset GmbH (RDC). The transaction is another important building block in the gradual shift of European long-distance transport from road to environmentally friendly rail.

The rating agency Fitch has upgraded the ratings of NORD/LB Norddeutsche Landesbank significantly. As Fitch announced on Monday, NORD/LB's long-term rating has improved by two notches from A- to A+. The rating agency based this decision on the improved mutual liability within the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe due to the recent reform of the institutional protection system.

Jasper Hanebuth (45) will start as the new Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of NORD/LB Norddeutsche Landesbank on 1 July. As a member of the Board of Management, he is responsible for the Bank's Finance, Treasury and ESG Management divisions.

NORD/LB Norddeutsche Landesbank is withdrawing from the aircraft financing business. The bank made this decision as part of a strategic review of the business segment. An agreement was concluded with Deutsche Bank for the sale of a large part of the portfolio (EUR 1.67 billion). Completion of the purchase agreement is subject to approval by the antitrust authorities. The sale is expected to be finalised in the second half of 2024. Both parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price. The remaining part of the portfolio (around EUR 1.1 billion) will remain in the NORD/LB Group and will be gradually phased out. New business activities in the segment will be discontinued.

Yesterday, NORD/LB Norddeutsche Landesbank successfully issued a Tier 2 bond in benchmark format. The EUR 500 million bond has a term of 10.25 years and a baa1 rating from Moody's. The bond coupon is 5.625%, which corresponds to a premium of 295 basis points above the swap centre. This is the Bank's first placement of a Tier 2 benchmark bond in over ten years.

NORD/LB reached Financial Close this week on the largest onshore wind farm in Lithuania and the Baltic region, namely Pagegiai Wind Farm (264MW). The project is located in the municipality of Pagegiai, approximately 270 kilometres west of the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, and will consist of 40 x 6.7MW Nordex wind turbines.