Chapters from the history of Denmark
Explore four articles that explain how Danske Bank’s history is woven together with Denmark’s development through 150 years in the areas of agriculture, industrialisation, urbanisation and digitalisation.
1871-1910
The bank moves out, farming moves in
Banks were very much a Copenhagen phenomenon in the mid-1800s. If you were a farmer, you had to be content with providing for your own immediate needs. The founding of Landmandsbanken in 1871, however, gave farmers the opportunity to borrow money for production and exports. This sowed the seeds of modern agriculture and had a massive impact on the development of Danish society.
A professor of economic history tells the story – and we meet Ewers Brothers, a company that has been along for the entire ride.
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1890-1960
Industrialisation sends Denmark on an export adventure
Denmark did not export much before Lanmandsbanken was founded in 1871. Nevertheless, the industrialisation of Denmark picked up speed as new technology evolved and business owners were better able to raise capital at the bank. However, there were bumps along the road towards our modern, globalised trade in the shape of two world wars and various international crises.
Read the history of Denmark’s industrialisation and nascent export adventure as told by an economic historian and a transport company that has progressed from handcarts in Copenhagen to become a global logistics company.
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1960-1990
Housing boom in the suburbs and women in the labour market
The 1960s were a time of upheaval that changed Denmark in many ways. Families moved to houses in the suburbs, where new private housing estates shot up. New loan options for both housing and consumption made it possible for Danish families to attain the “villa, Volvo and ‘vovhund’ (a dog)” ideal. Meanwhile, more and more women remained in the labour market after they got married – meet one of them.
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1960-2021
Digital innovation changes the everyday lives of Danes
Innovation has always been part of Danske Bank’s DNA – from overdrafts in the 1800s to the groundbreaking EDP machines in the 1960s and then MobilePay and our current Mobilebank. Recent decades have seen a transition from analogue and face-to-face services to digital tools – a development where banks have been among the leaders in making Denmark an international heavyweight in digitalisation.
What is more, we have probably only seen the beginning of the digitalisation story.
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