The acquisition comes as part of the Swedish banking group's growth drive in the Netherlands.

Stockholm-headquartered Handelsbanken has agreed to acquire Dutch wealth management company Optimix Vermogensbeheer for an undisclosed sum.

Handelsbanken is the latest investment house to make moves in the Dutch market. This month it emerged Luxembourg-headquartered KBL European Private Banker is purchasing Insinger de Beaufort, a Netherlands-based private bank, while the UK's Schroders is acquiring a 25 per cent stake in Dutch direct lending firm NEOS Business Finance.

The purchase of Optimix, which is subject to regulatory approval, will add to Handelsbanken's presence in the Netherlands, where it already has 23 branches. Optimix manages assets of around €2 billion ($2.3 billion), with operations in Amsterdam, Groningen and Vught. Following the transaction, the company will continue to operate under its own name, assuming responsibility for all of Handelsbanken's wealth management activities in the Netherlands.

“Handelsbanken is steadily growing in the Netherlands, particularly among customers with high requirements for advanced wealth management. This purchase makes it possible for us to broaden our offering to these customers. It is also a vital step in our evolution towards becoming a full-service bank in the Netherlands,” said Mikael Sorensen, head of Handelsbanken in the Netherlands.

Handelsbanken, which was founded in 1871, considers the Netherlands one of its six home markets. The other five are Sweden, the UK, Denmark, Finland and Norway. Over the first quarter of 2016, the group's post-tax profit rose 3 per cent year-on-year to SEK4.04 billion ($501 million).