A Europe-listed group of companies has expressed interest in acquiring a stake in Izola Bank plc together with its parent companies, a move that has been welcomed by the Maltese bank’s Board of Directors.

In a market update on Friday, Izola Bank’s Board of Directors announced the bank, its immediate Malta-registered parent company IBL T Limited, as well as IBL T’s own parent company, Van Marcke Finance N.V., a company registered in Belgium, have received a letter of intent from the European group.

In the letter, the group outlined its aspiration to acquire 49.9 per cent of the issued share capital of IBL T, thus resulting in an additional indirect qualifying holding in the bank.

Izola Bank is wholly owned by Van Marcke Group, a family-owned company that operates stores in Belgium, France, the United States, Switzerland and Luxembourg. Van Marcke Group initially established a banking arm to service its own commercial needs, choosing Malta as its location.

Izola Bank obtained its licence as a credit institution in 1994, and over the years it has expanded its online activities to serve an increasing business and personal banking customer base across Malta, Belgium and France. It specialises in products that aim to support the growth ambitions of small-to-medium-sized businesses, as well as personal customers.

The Board of Directors of Izola Bank, together with IBL T and Van Marcke Finance view the aforementioned letter of intent as a “positive development” for the bank.

They believe that the addition of a new strategic investor in the ownership structure “not only has the potential to strengthen the bank’s capital position,” but also presents an opportunity to develop further its business lines, especially its existing factoring business, “unlocking new growth prospects.”

Additionally, Izola Bank stated that the group’s values and business model align with those of Van Marcke Group.

As a result, Izola Bank, Van Marcke Finance and the European group “will embark on more detailed discussions and make further announcements as appropriate in the coming weeks to keep the market informed,” the statement continued.

In addition to this, Izola Bank’s Board of Directors also announced that the bank has completed its move to new offices at Castille Place, Valletta following the completion of a multi-year refurbishment project.