One Of The Largest Commercial Banks In The Czech Republic (CHESOB) Is One Of The Largest Commercial Banks In The Czech Republic. It Is A Universal Bank Offering A Full Range Of Banking Services To Individuals And Companies. It Operates 280 CHESOB Branded Branches And 3,300 Branches Of The Czech Postal Company (CzechPostal Corporation) Under The Brand Name Poštovní Spožitelna.

The Bank Is Owned By Belgium-based KBC Bank. Until 2008, CHESOB Operated In Slovakia, But In 2008 A New Company, Šeskoslovenskáobchodnábanka, A.s. (CHESOB Slovakia), Was Established Under The Direct Control Of KBC Bank. The Czech ŠSOB Holds A 47% Minority Stake In The Slovak ŠSOB. Since 2011, The Bank Has Sponsored HC Pardubice, The Czech Ice Hockey Club, Under The Name HC ŠSOB Pojišovna Pardubice.

Administrative Building Of The Bank Of Šeskoslovenskáobchodní In Prague - Radlice Of Josef Pleskot

Administrative Building Of The Bank Of Šeskoslovenskáobchodná In Bratislava

History

ŠSOB Was Founded In 1964 In The Former Czechoslovakia And Is The Only Bank That Provides Foreign Trade, Financing And Convertible Currency Business. After 1989, ŠSOB Expanded Its Scope Of Activities To Include Services For Entrepreneurs And Individuals.

In June 1999, Belgian KBC Bank (a Member Of The KBC Group NV) Purchased A 66% Majority Stake From The Czech Government For 40 Billion Czech Koruna, An Important Milestone In The History Of ŠSOB. Later, In 1999, KBC Purchased Another 16.63% Stake From The National Bank Of Slovakia. At The Same Time, The European Bank For Reconstruction And Development Purchased A 7.47% Stake From The National Statistical Office.

Before Acquiring Its Bankrupt Competitor Investičnía Poštovníbanka In 1999, ŠSOB Was The Fourth Largest Bank In The Czech Republic. The Acquisition Of Investičnía Poštovníbanka, Then The Third Largest Bank In The Czech Republic, Added 3.30 Million Customers And A Branch Network Of 179.

Since July 1, 2008, ŠSOB Slovakia Has Started To Merge With Istrobanka Following Its Acquisition By KBC.

In November 2009, KBC Announced Plans To List A 40% Stake In ŠSOB On The Prague Stock Exchange The Following Year.

In 2010, ŠSOB Founded The Era Brand With The Hope Of Attracting Younger Customers, But Failed To Do So, And In 2015 Began Advertising The Brand With Its Subsidiary Poštovní Spožitelna.

In 2014 Pavel Kavánek, The CEO Of ŠSOB, Who Had Held The Position For 20 Years, Was Taken Over By John Hollows. Kavánek Continued To Serve As A Director On The Supervisory Board Of ŠOSB Until Zdenžk Tžma Took Over The Position In 2019. Hollows Retired In 2022 After 25 Years With The KBC Group, Succeeding AlešBražek, The Former CEO Of KBC Bank Ireland.

CHESOB Acquired Top-Pojištıní, The Largest Online Seller Of Travel Insurance In The Czech Republic, In 2016. At The Time, Top-Pojištıní, With 270,000 Customers, Was An Independent Insurance Broker Offering Insurance From 13 Different Companies.

In 2019, CHESOB Acquired The Remaining 45% Stake In Šeskomoravská Stavební Spožitelna (ŠMSS) From Bausparkasse Schwäbisch Hall (BSH) For 6.15 Billion Kroner. ŠMSS Has 1.30 Million Customers And, After Being Taken Over, Is The Largest Provider Of Construction Savings In The Czech Republic.

The Czech National Bank (CHENB) Fined The Bank 1.50 Million Kroner In 2020 For Its Refusal To Replace Damaged Banknotes In 2018 And 2019.

In December 2020, CHESOB Was Sued By The Company TEP Praha For Withholding 1.30 Billion Czech Krona, Which, According To TEP Praha, Should Have Been Used For A Railway Hub Near Kosice, Slovakia. CHESOB Withheld The Funds Because The Source Of The Funds Was Unknown, Because The Listing Address Of TEP Praha's Headquarters Led To The Auction Of A Dilapidated Building In Early 2020, And Because The Company Was Not Active In The Years Leading Up To The Lawsuit. The Funds Were Later Suspected To Have Come From A Russian Money Laundering Scheme, As The Honorary Consul Of Russian-Slovak Had Asked The Honorary Consul Of Belgian-Slovak To Investigate The Circumstances Surrounding The Withholding Of The Money.

In 2022, The Subsidiary Poštovní Spožitelna Changed Its Name To CHESOB Poštovní Spožitelna, And CHESOB Allowed Customers To Use Their Branch Network As Well As Their Services.

In 2023, ŠSOB Was Ordered To Pay 3.70 Billion CZK To Icec-Holding, Which Initiated The Contract In 2016. Icec-Holding Sued Investičnía Poštovní Bank (IPB), With Which ŠSOB Later Took Over The Legal Issues Of The Bank In 1999, Alleging That IPB Had Breached Its Contractual Obligations By Taking Over The Slovenian Paper Mills In Which Icec Had A Stake.

CHESOB Group

CHESOB Group Is One Of The Largest Financial Institution Groups In The Czech Republic. As Of January 1, 2013, The Core Market Activities Of The KBC Group Were Arranged In Three Business Units: Belgium, Czech Republic And International Markets.