Arbejdernes Landsbank

Arbejdernes Landsbank

Company type	Aktieselskabet
Industry	Financial services
Founded	June 19, 1919
Headquarters	Vesterbrogade 5, Copenhagen , Denmark
Key people	Gert R. Jonassen (Managing Director) Jan Walther Andersen (CEO)
Operating income	DKK 329.826 million(2015)
Net income	DKK 137.993 million (2015)
Total assets	DKK 42,070.389 million (2015)
Total equity	DKK 5,279.627 billion (2015)
Owner	Fagligt Fælles Forbund (20%)
Number of employees	1,075 (2015)
Subsidiaries	AL Finans A/S
Website	www.al-bank.dk

Arbejdernes Landsbank (National Workers Bank) is a Danish bank founded in 1919 with approximately 250.000 customers and 1,075 employees. It is the 7th largest bank in Denmark. As of 2014 the bank has 70 branches in Denmark.

History

The bank was founded by Danish trade unions, the Social Democrats and Arbejderkul (union of coal workers) with a starting capital of DKK 2 million, most of which was pledged by Arbejderkul, who were particularly powerful after performing a crucial role in securing Denmark's energy supply during World War I. Although the bank was officially a public company, the shares could not be listed and remained with the labour movement. In practice the bank operated as a cooperative.

During the great depression, major shareholder Arbejderkul ran into trouble and the trade union federation joined the ownership of the bank. In the 1960s the bank went through a major growth period, attracting new private customers and many independent branches were opened throughout Denmark. In 1986, ALFINA was bought and later renamed to AL Finans A/S. The bank also owns a share in Østjydsk Bank.

As of 2014, the bank has 24,000 private shareholders, although the trade unions remain the major shareholders.

Customer satisfaction

In customer satisfaction studies among Danish banks, Arbejdernes Landsbank is consistently ranked as the highest rated bank.