Today Hansabank, SEB Bank, and Sampo Bank sold Estonia’s national processor Pankade Kaardikeskus AS (PKK) to the centre to Scandinavia’s leading card transaction agent Northern European Transaction Services (NETS), writes postimees.ee.

“Together we looked over possible future developments of PKK and reached the conclusion that changes have to be made in the ownership structure of the centre,” Raulis Üksvärav, Hansapank’s card transaction business manager, explained the decision to sell.

“Processing card transaction is one of those services that in the long perspective don’t belong among the main operating areas of banks. Whereas giving cards to the customers and offering services to businesses will still remain the main business,” Üksvärav said.

PKK was created in 1993 by two banks when Estonia was just starting to use cards transactions and it’s aim was to technically support accepting and handing out cards, as well as regulating the usage of domestic cards.

Even after the NETS acquisition, the daily routine of PKK won’t change, the centre will still continue to service Hansapank, SEB, Sampo, and other Estonian banks. The current CEO Raivo Tinn and his team of about 40 employees will stay on.

Northern European Transaction Services (NETS) is one of the leading processors of card transactions in Europe.

Half of the enterprise belongs to Bankenes BetalingsSentral Profile AS (BBS) from Norway and half to Payment Business Service Profile A/S (PBS) from Denmark.