Nordic banks pass EU stress test

(STOCKHOLM) - Ten banks in Sweden, Norway and Finland passed European Union stress tests, their financial regulators said on Friday.

The banks in the test were Sweden's Nordea, Handelsbanken, SEB and Swedbank; Denmark's Danske Bank, Jyske Bank, Nykredit and Sydbank; Finland's OP-Pohjola and Norway's DNB NOR.

All the banks passed their tests with comfortable Tier One capital margins, the regulators said in separate statements.

The Swedish banks passed the test with a "good margin", between 8.6 percent and 10.5 percent, well above the 5.0 percent Tier One capital requirement laid down by the European Banking Authority that organised the test.

In Denmark, the results were between 9.4 percent and 13.6 percent.

Norwegian bank DNB OR was participating for the first time and passed with Tier One capital of 9.0 percent.

Finland's OP-Pohjola passed the test with 11.5 percent, the Finnish financial authority said.