The hiatus following the SEB-Swedbank deal has been broken as competitors wrestle for control of Norwegian financial services group Storebrand. The Nordic banking sector is bracing itself for another round of upheaval following last week's announcement by Finnish bancassurance group Sampo that it had gained agreement for its $2.29bn (&euro2.5bn) bid for Storebrand, trumping an earlier $1.94bn offer by Den Norske, Norway's leading bank.

A recommendation by the Storebrand board to accept Sampo's cash and paper offer of $8.26 per share will not necessarily end in victory, since Norway's biggest insurer is one of the few trophy assets remaining to those institutions that are left in the cold by the past 18 months of intense consolidation.