STOCKHOLM, Sept 11 (Reuters) - Digital banking group

NOBA has announced plans to list on the Nasdaq Stockholm

exchange sometime in the third quarter of this year in a deal

expected to value the company at around 35 billion Swedish

crowns ($3.74 billion).

NOBA's listing plans make it the second major Swedish

financial services group to opt to go public this year, with

buy-now, pay-later lender Klarna ( KLAR ) making its New York

debut this week.

NOBA said on Thursday that Finland's OP Cooperative, DNB

Asset Management and Handelsbanken Fonder had entered into

cornerstone agreements to subscribe to up to around 3.18 billion

crowns of shares at an offer price representing an equity value

of up to 35 billion crowns at the initial public offering.

The NOBA Group is controlled by private equity firm Nordic

Capital's funds and Finnish insurer Sampo Oyj ( SAXPF ), according to

information on its website.

"Today, NOBA is one of Europe's leading specialist banks

with an impressive profitable growth, serving over two million

customers," Christopher Ekdahl, Partner at Nordic Capital

Advisors and a member of NOBA's board, said in a statement.

"Nordic Capital believes a listing is the next natural step

for NOBA."

NOBA could be joined by other European digital banks and

fintech companies that have ambitions to go public. Revolut,

Monzo and Starling in Britain are widely seen as potential IPO

candidates but are yet to lay out concrete plans.

NOBA operates across the Nordic region and offers credit

cards in Germany, as well as deposit products in Germany, Spain,

the Netherlands and Ireland.

It operates under the brands Nordax Bank, Bank Norwegian and

Svensk Hypotekspension.

NOBA chief executive, Jacob Lundblad, said the listing would

raise the public profile of the lender and allow it to tap

investors to fund potential acquisitions in the future.

"We shouldn't rule out that we will do acquisitions," he

told Reuters. "There's a big chance that we can fund a lot of

that ourselves through our profits. But if the target is right,

then there's obviously the opportunity to access the capital

market in a good way being a listed company."

Sweden's IPO market has been a bright spot this year amid a

wider downturn for European listings. The country hosted 11 IPOs

and direct listings in the first half of 2025, raising a total

of 1.9 billion euros ($2.22 billion), according to PwC data.

This compares with nine listings with total proceeds of 264

million euros in the same period last year, based on PwC data.

($1 = 9.3608 Swedish crowns)

($1 = 0.8554 euros)