German engineering group Siemens is planning to start its own bank in a move principally be aimed at expanding its financial services arm, it was reported.
The banking licence will also mean Siemens will be able to extend its financing sources.
“With the help of a licensed credit institution, Siemens aims to expand the product portfolio of its financial services unit, particularly in the sales finance area, add flexibility to group financing and optimise its risk management,” Siemens said, in a statement published in the UK’s Financial Times newspaper.
Siemens would be among the first German industrial businesses to gain its own banking licence, outside the car industry.