Latvijas Krājbanka
# Latvijas Krājbanka

Latvijas Krājbanka (Nasdaq Baltic: LKB1R,Nasdaq Baltic: LKB2R) is a Latvian bank listed on the Riga OMX exchange. The bank dates back to 1924 when it was founded as the Latvian Postal Savings Bank. Operations of the savings bank continued in various forms during the Soviet period, and following the regained Latvian independence, the privatisation process of the bank was initiated in 1997 and concluded in 2003.

The main shareholders are Lithuanian based Snoras banking group and the Russian businessman Vladimir Antonov. In 2009, Latvijas Krājbanka had a turnover revenue of 34.6 million Latvian lats with a loss of 1.9 million lats. The bank had 941 employees and 155 customer service centres in Latvia.

In November 2011, the bank was taken over by the Latvian government and will be liquidated due to bankruptcy of Snoras. Antonov was accused of fraud and misappropriation of US$290 million.

2009 was a year of severe economic crisis in Latvia, with a sharp drop in GDP, exports and imports, and sharp declines in construction, retail, manufacturing and other sectors of the economy. In 2009, Latvijas Krājbanka's turnover was LVL 34.6 million, with a loss of LVL 1.9 million. Later that year, the bank celebrated its 85th anniversary and Ivars Priedītis took over as Chairman of the Board.

In 2010, the improvement of the Latvian economy also affected the performance of the banking sector. Savings Bank continued its activities and development, including supporting important cultural events.

