A decade and a half after suffering what may have been the worst banking crisis in its history, Norway's financial services industry is undergoing yet another round of significant structural changes. This time, however, the transformation is driven not by a combination of economic factors and misguided monetary policy, but by the consolidation of some of Scandinavia's longest-standing financial institutions.

The combination of financial services companies for the purpose of capturing additional market share and achieving economies of scale is old news across most of Europe. In Norway, however, the combination of Norwegian-born companies with institutions outside its borders (primarily Sweden, Denmark and Iceland) only recently has become a reality. A similarly insular approach also has characterized Norway's equity markets: of 118 listed companies, only 20 were foreign-owned.

This is just a sample of what you'll find in the complete Norway guide.