What happens if a bank is failing?
If a bank must assume that, due to its financial position, it is failing or in the near future is likely to fail, the bank shall notify the Financial Supervisory Authority (FSA) accordingly. The FSA can also make such an assessment on its own. The FSA reports this to the Ministry of Finance.
If the Ministry of Finance considers the bank to be failing or likely to fail, there are two possible paths forward. If it is considered to be in the public interest, the bank is placed in what is called resolution. This includes the use of several possible resolution tools, but what is important for you as a depositor is that the deposit business will either continue in the bank or be transferred to another bank.
If public interests do not require such treatment, the bank shall be liquidated under public administration. The bank is then closed for depositor who no longer can withdraw or deposit money in the bank. This automatically triggers a task for the Norwegian Banks' Guarantee Fund. The deposits will be available to you as a customer within seven working days at the latest. This happens either by the Norwegian Banks’ Guarantee Fund paying out the guaranteed deposits to you, or by the deposits being transferred to another bank and made available to you there.