Purpose of the Fund

The VTS Fund serves as the buffer fund for the Finnish deposit insurance scheme. The purpose of the Fund is to finance its member banks' payment obligations towards the deposit insurance scheme.

The Fund was established in 1998. It operates administratively in conjunction with Finance Finland, but is independent in its decision-making.

The activities of the Fund are governed by the Act Amending the Credit Institutions Act (1199/2014), in which the Fund is designated as the “old deposit guarantee fund”. Operations of the Fund are supervised by the Finnish Financial Supervisory Authority. The Rules of the Fund and any amendments thereto are approved by the Ministry of Finance. The Fund is also required to inform the Financial Stability Authority of its investment activities.

The Fund’s assets originate from member banks’ contributions collected between 1998 and 2014, along with returns accrued on the Fund’s investments. Investment income continues to be added to the Fund’s capital. According to the Fund’s rules, the Fund shall be dissolved once its assets are fully depleted.

The Fund keeps track of each member banks's total contributions. The amount that has not yet been utilised for deposit insurance purposes is referred to as its 'Accumulation Share'. According to the legislation, the Accumulation Share shall not be considered as the bank’s property, meaning that a member bank may not withdraw or transfer its Accumulation Share.

The Accumulation Share may, however, be used to cover a bank’s contribution in the field of deposit insurance to the Financial Stability Authority, as long as the bank's Accumulation Share is sufficient for the purpose. The assets of the Fund may only be used for the purposes of financing the Finnish deposit insurance scheme.

Since the beginning of 2015, the Finnish deposit insurance scheme is operated by the Financial Stability Authority.