[2] The new company was issued a banking license by the Luxembourg Ministry of Finance in late 2005 and went on to launch its business operations in 2006.
Advanzia Bank also entered the German market in the same year in a development seen as an example of the increasing competition between national and foreign financial institutions at that time.
[5] It initially focused its activities on two products: a no-fee credit card and a deposit account as an investment option with an above-average interest rate.
[10] Advanzia Bank operates as a Société Anonyme (SA), a public limited company according to Luxembourg law.
The majority of its shares, a total of about 60%, have been owned by Norwegian company Kistefos since 2006, and they list Advanzia bank as a consolidated business in their financial statements.
[12] Bengt Arve Rem, Chief Executive Officer of Kistefos, is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Advanzia Bank.