Silicon Valley Bank To Lend $200M To Danish Tech Firms

Silicon Valley Bank, a unit of SVB Financial Group, revealed plans to invest a minimum of $200 million to supply loans to Danish technology companies. Erin Platts, head of EMEA operations, announced that the bank is opening up an office in Copenhagen as the result of an active tech community, and the fact that Denmark doesn’t require a license to make loans.

The new managing director for Denmark, Sebastian Penn, will be based in Copenhagen.

“Denmark presents an exciting opportunity for us to expand our European operations, and we are thrilled to welcome Sebastian on board,” said Platts. “Our expansion into Denmark is a key milestone for SVB, and underscores our commitment to the European technology landscape. It allows us to broaden the network of companies we serve, while contributing to the growth of the global innovation economy.”

The bank — which also has offices in Ireland, Israel and Germany — boasts a client list that includes 67 percent of companies that went public last year with venture capital support. Platts said that Silicon Valley Bank will use its U.S. network and U.K. balance sheet to offer Danish companies lending tools, including venture debt, acquisition financing and loans tied to initial public offerings (IPOs).

“I’m delighted to join SVB to lead our presence in Denmark and the Nordics. There is a huge amount of activity taking place in this market, with lots of inspiring businesses. We believe our increased presence will bring real value to local businesses here, particularly for those planning to grow quickly and internationally,” said Penn.

Martin Wagner, CFO at Siteimprove, added, “We are excited, on behalf of the vibrant [Software-as-a-Service (SaaS)] growth [of] companies in Denmark and the Nordics, to now have a truly growth-focused bank in the region to challenge the existing offerings. Siteimprove has partnered with SVB for two years, and the SVB team has helped us maintain our growth and invest in profitable initiatives to the benefit of employees and shareholders.”