When Erna Solberg became the country’s most powerful person in 2013, Sindre Finnes received a message from the Prime Minister’s office: “In our view, the spouse’s share trading will create challenges for the incoming Prime Minister”. Nevertheless, he continued with active share trading in hiding. news can now present an overview of the most important political events in Erna Solberg’s reign, linked to Finnes’ share dealings. news has been in contact with Sindre Finnes’ lawyer, Thomas Skjelbred, and asked him questions about the share investments. – Finnes will answer these questions for the Norwegian authorities to the extent that they have questions related to this. Beyond that, I don’t have any further things to add, says Skjelbred to news. Photo: Stian Lysberg Solum / NTB Big deal in Hydro On 21 October 2020, the news came that Norsk Hydro was to enter into an important collaboration with publicly owned Lyse AS. They were to establish a joint power company that would take over power production in the Røldal-Suldal watershed. Finnes buys out of Hydro on 21 October and sells out on 23 October. In the period 22.–23. October, the share rises 6.59 per cent. Photo: Javad Parsa / NTB Already in 2014, news wrote that Finnes had shares in Hydro, but then he replied to news: “There are no regulations for me to provide that information.” In an interview with news today, Thursday 21 September, Erna Solberg was confronted with the Hydro shares going back to 2014. – In 2014, the shareholding was so low that we thought it did not trigger disqualification, Solberg said. Finnes writes in an e-mail to all of Medie-Norge from 19 September this year about the transactions during the corona pandemic. – At no time during this period (pandemic period, editor’s note) was I made aware of information about the government’s decisions, which can be described as inside information. Participated in Nordic Mining’s stock exchange party On 7 October 2013, the Sundvolden platform came from the Solberg government. It states, among other things, that the government will: “Open for the mineral industry to use marine landfill, but set strict requirements and ensure environmental monitoring.” This opens the way for the mining company Nordic Mining to start investigations into the sea landfill in Førdefjorden. A controversial decision that has since sparked protests from environmentalists. Photo: Ole Berg-Rusten / NTB Based on Sindre Finnes’ share overview, we see that he traded shares in the mining company Nordic Mining for the first time on 19 September 2013, one day after the news broke that the company would receive NOK 2.3 million to investigate Førde – the fjord. Then he trades on October 3 and sells down in December. Meanwhile, the share price is soaring. Erna Solberg tells news that Finnes did not know anything in the Nordic Mining case that was not known to the media already, and adds: – Nordic Mining was one of the areas he sold after talks with SMK. In his joint e-mail to the press from 19 September, Finnes also writes about Nordic Mining. – I sold the Nordic Mining share in 2013, and I have no further comments on this share during the time Erna was prime minister. Photo: Ole Berg-Rusten / NTB The oil decisions In January 2019, the government offers 83 extraction permits on the Norwegian continental shelf in the TFO 2018 concession round (allocation in predefined areas). In January 2020, the government is offering 69 extraction permits on the Norwegian continental shelf in the TFO 2020 concession round (allocation in predefined areas). On 7 January 2020, the Johan Sverdrup field in the North Sea opens. It is the largest development on the Norwegian continental shelf since the 1980s. On 19 June 2020, the Storting adopts the controversial oil tax package. It has major consequences for the economy of the oil industry. In January 2021, the government is offering 61 extraction permits on the Norwegian continental shelf in the TFO 2019 concession round (allocation in predefined areas). On 29 June 2021, the government says yes to development and operation of the Breidablikk field in the North Sea. Photo: Terje Bendiksby / NTB Sindre Finnes traded in Equinor November 2019 – July 2020, where he also on several occasions gives up the share and bets both that the share will fall and increase in value. He invests in Aker BP in the period April – June 2020. He buys shares in ABL Group in June 2020. Finnes writes in an email from 19 September this year. – There is no coincidence between the oil tax package and my trades, and I was at no time aware of sensitive information related to this. What is gearing of shares? Leveraging means that shares are bought with borrowed money. The goal is to make more money, but the risk of loss is greater. Just like a car, you can shift up and down. If you have NOK 10,000 and gear the investment by 5, you borrow NOK 40,000 and can invest NOK 50,000. This means that you earn more when the stock goes up, but that you lose all the more if the stock goes down. You usually borrow the money from the brokerage house, where the brokerage house earns money from the interest from the loan. Bets back and forth in hydrogen On 22 August 2019, Equinor receives 2.3 billion in offshore wind support from state-owned Enova. At the time, the largest amount of support from Enova ever. On 3 June 2020, the government presents its hydrogen investment. The hydrogen company NEL is one of the companies Sindre Finnes has traded in the most. He trades in the company in the period November 2018 – March 2021. He bets both that the stock will fall and rise and shifts his bets on several occasions. On some days he has up to 10 trades. On 11 June 2021, the government will hold a hearing on land allocation, licensing process and applications for wind power. Sindre Finnes traded in Arendal’s Fossekompani in the period April – June 2021. The airline industry and corona In June 2016, the government introduced air passenger tax, which had an impact on the finances of the various airlines. Photo: Heiko Junge / NTB In January 2021, the government will set aside 1.5 billion for a so-called hybrid loan to Norwegian, a crisis loan after the corona which should be able to be converted into shares after a certain time. Sindre Finnes invested in Norwegian in the period January – April 2019. On 12 March 2020, the government introduced infection control measures due to corona. What has subsequently stood as “the strongest and most invasive measures we have had in Norway in peacetime”. During the day, the stock exchange plunged by 9 percent. In April 2020, the Storting introduced the so-called corona support, or compensation scheme for business. One of the individual companies that received the most support was the seismic company PGS, which received 284 million in corona support. Sindre Finnes sold off a number of shares on 12 March 2021, including Yara and Hydro shares. State ownership On 19 June 2014, it became known that the government wanted to sell off large companies such as Telenor and Kongsberg Gruppen. October 2015: The VimpelCom case develops into Telenor chairman Svein Aaser resigning, following a disagreement with industry minister Monica Mæland. Telenor’s share price falls immediately after the news becomes known. Based on Finnes’ share overview, we see that he has traded shares in both Kongsberg Gruppen and Telenor. In Kongsberg Gruppen he acts in October 2017 and in February – November 2020. In Telenor he acts July – Aug. 2017, here (see fact box) he also buys the share and bets that it will fall in value. In the photo below, you see Prime Minister Erna Solberg in July 2016 opening the new technology center at Kongsberg Automotive, where Sindre Finnes is involved. In the period May – December 2020, he bought and sold shares in the same company. Photo: Terje Bendiksby / NTB Salmon and farming In March 2014, Norway together with the EU introduced sanctions against Russia after the invasion of Crimea, which led to Russia in August introducing an import ban on, among other things, Norwegian foodstuffs. Norwegian salmon exports were hit hard. In August 2016, the Lerøy government gave the green light to the acquisition of Havfisk and Norway Seafoods. In December 2016, Norway and China normalize relations and salmon exports to China pick up again. In October 2017, the government introduced a traffic light system in the farming industry that went to the farming of salmon, trout and rainbow trout. In November 2019, NOU on the salmon tax will be presented. In May 2020, production tax on aquaculture will be introduced. In February 2021, MOWI receives permission from the Ministry of Trade and Fisheries for salmon farming in Vega. Sindre Finnes invested in the company MOWI in the period January 2014 – April 2020 and in Lerøy January – February 2021. Photo: Marit Hommedal / NTB During Solberg’s reign, her integrity was assessed in matters related to Marine Harvest, now MOWI. – Erna Solberg stated in connection with taking office in 2013 that she could be incompetent in matters concerning Marine Harvest, due to her sister’s position in the company, says communications manager at the Prime Minister’s Office (SMK) Anne Kristin Hjukse. There is no record of cases where Solberg has declared himself incompetent, writes SMK to news. – But whether she was incompetent in matters concerning aquaculture depended on a concrete assessment in the individual case. Solberg himself was responsible for continuously assessing his competence, and asked for assistance if necessary, explains Hjukse in an e-mail to news. Dealing with bank claims On 1 July 2015, the government introduced the mortgage regulations. Requirements for the loan-to-value ratio and ability to service debt had then been applicable as guidelines for several years. The purpose of the regulation was to set requirements for the banks’ lending practices in order to prevent financial vulnerability in households and financial institutions. In September 2020, the government came out and advised the banks against taking dividends. In May 2021, the Ministry of Finance decided that DNB and DNB Bank could merge. Photo: Terje Pedersen / NTB Sindre Finnes invested in shares in Sbanken in November 2015 – April 2017 and in DNB in the period August 2017 – September 2020. He increases the DNB share throughout the period and most often bets that the share price will fall. He also invests in Gjensidige in November 2015-October 2019. In an e-mail to the media as late as Thursday 21 September, Sindre Finnes’ lawyer writes: – It is still, as far as I know the case and based on what is reported in media, no indications that any of Finnes’ share deals are based on inside information or other irregularities, writes lawyer Thomas Skjelbred at Elden Advokatfirma.
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This is how Finne’s shares traded while Solberg was prime minister – news Norway – Overview of news from various parts of the country
