Landesbank Berlin Holding

30
Retail Banking
Insurance and building society business
in ascendance
Landesbank Berlin’s insurance business also recorded
gratifying growth in 2007. Net policy premiums (life
assurance and annuity insurance including fund-linked
agreements and direct public service insurance) rose
by 12% to € 245.8 million.
Building society business generated growth in total
savings of 8% to € 295.8 million.
324,000 new credit cards issued
Landesbank Berlin remains the largest issuer of credit
cards in Germany. This leading position is due not
least to a large number of co-branding programmes
where the Bank works with large numbers of well
known companies from the retail and services sectors.
These allow customers to enjoy innovative
products with obvious additional benefits such as
discounts or services. The Bank has partnerships
with ADAC, the online retailer Amazon, the airline
Air Berlin and with Microsoft Xbox.
Credit card business also performed well in 2007.
The number of credit cards issued rose to more than
1.8 million cards compared with 1.5 million cards at
the end of the previous year. The co-branding programme
with the online retailer Amazon has been
particularly popular with more than 100,000 cards
issued since it was launched in November 2006,
which is far higher than expected.
Internet banking expanded through netbank AG
On July 11, 2007, Landesbank Berlin acquired a
strategic majority holding in netbank AG based in
Hamburg with economic effect from January 1, 2007.
netbank operates exclusively as an Internet bank
and offers a wide range of banking and securities
services as well as financial products such as
insurance policies. At the end of 2007, it managed
approximately 87,000 clients. The acquisition is
allowing LBB to expand its position in the important
Internet sales channel and also to intensify business
with credit card customers.