Norway: Penetrating the Secrecy of Financial Institutions — A Norwegian Perspective Available to Purchase

Officers and officials of financial institutions arc, as a basic rule, obliged to keep secret information obtained by virtue of their position. The same applies to valuers, commission agents and others who carry out assignments for business. Such an obligation is not only laid down in the general provision on secrecy in the Financial Services Act 1988 (FSA), which applies to all financing businesses. The duty to keep secret information coming to knowledge in a professional capacity also follows from the more specific legislation governing some financial institutions; such as savings banks, commercial banks, companies or other institutions comprised under the Insurance Operation Act and the Norwegian Postbank.