Today the President of Iceland, Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson attended formal opening ceremonies for Iceland's Landsbanki's bank's new representative office in Winnipeg, Canada.

To begin with, Landsbanki's Winnipeg office will introduce private banking services to Western Canadians. The bank provides customised investment options for high net-worth clients, through its investment expertise and direct access to securities markets in Iceland and 13 other European countries. Landsbanki has already established a Canadian office in Halifax, Nova Scotia, located on the Atlantic coast, to promote its corporate finance and advisory services.

The opening of Landsbanki's new Winnipeg office has been awaited with considerable anticipation, not least among approximately 80,000 Manitobans of Icelandic descent.

Landsbanki hopes to open a foreign bank in Winnipeg in the near future, offering a wider variety of banking services, all of them supervised by the Canadian financial regulators.

In his address at the formal opening ceremonies, Björgólfur Guðmundsson, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Landsbanki, offered a new perspective on the historical relationship. "Relations between Icelanders both in Canada and in Iceland have always been warm, although in the economic sphere they have not previously been especially strong. Up until now, the relationship has focused primarily on our common origin and heritage, but I hope that, with the opening of this office here today, we can begin building business relations to supplement our vital cultural connections. I am confident that such relations between Icelanders in Canada and in Iceland will in the future prove to be to our mutual benefit - and enjoyment."

Halldór J. Kristjánsson, Landsbanki's CEO remarked: "In recent years Landsbanki has greatly expanded its overseas operations, to the point where now over half of the bank's income originates abroad. In opening an office in Winnipeg, we will introduce the same services we provide in other countries, with the difference that here we hope to attract customers with whom we have, for historical reasons, especially close ties. One might say that we are offering Western Icelanders a chance to take advantage of our international financial experience and expertise, and at the same time to be part of the positive development of Icelandic enterprises and the Icelandic economy. In so doing we open up a route to all Europe's leading investment markets."

About Landsbanki
Landsbanki was established by an act of parliament in 1885 and opened for business in 1886. Landsbanki is Iceland’s oldest full-service commercial bank. While state-owned, Landsbanki functioned as the central bank of Iceland, from 1928 until 1961, when the Central Bank of Iceland was established.

Following its privatisation process from government ownership in 1998-2003, Landsbanki has expanded rapidly. It leads the domestic market in virtually all segments of the financial services sector while internationally the Bank has developed a dynamic pan-European platform to provide comprehensive financial services to small- and medium-size European companies.

Landsbanki currently has 40 branches and sub-branches throughout Iceland, plus a wide-ranging network of international correspondent banks. Combined with its broad range of financial products and services, this market coverage has made the Bank Iceland’s primary source of general and specialised financial services to individuals, corporate entities and institutions.

For further information about Landsbanki, contact Investor Relations by email ir@landsbanki.is, by phone +354 410 7200 or visit the website, www.landsbanki.is.