Danske Bank beat forecasts for fourth-quarter profit on Friday, closing out a record year, and announced a share buyback plan and extraordinary dividends, sending its shares up 7%.

The Copenhagen-based bank reported a rise in net profit that beat its expectation, said it is well-positioned for future growth.

Danske Bank's shares surged on Friday after the Danish lender posted a record-high net profit of £2.6bn for 2024.

Denmark's biggest lender Danske Bank posted record annual profits on Friday, backed by rising customer activity and low loan losses, and said it would launch a new share buy-back programme of 5 billion Danish crowns ($695.