Sep
3
BBR Staff Writer
Published 03 September 2013
Private equity groups from the US and the UK are vying to acquire Spainish nationalized bank EVO Banco, in a bid to tap the emerging business opportunities of the country.
A consortium of US buyout group Centerbridge, and the UK-based Anacap are engaged in discussions with Nova Galicia, for the potential acquisition of EVO Banco, as reported by the Financial Times.
Sources familiar with the matter were quoted by the news agency as saying that if the negotiations will continue on the right track, the proposed deal might be announced in the next two weeks.
Spain’s state bank rescue fund, dubbed as the Fondo de reestructuración ordenada bancaria (FROB), owns EVO Banco, and the proposed sale might help the fund to recoup some money it infused in the lender.
FROB was set up in June 2009 by the Spanish government with an initial funding of €99bn, to act as a banking bailout and reconstruction program.
Mediobanca, which is acting as an adviser for Nova Galicia, said it was going ahead with the disposal of EVO, although it declined to disclose the name of the potential acquirers.
French-based financial company BNP Paribas is serving as adviser to the Frob, over the deal.
The interested parties have placed their final bids two weeks ago and are currently carrying out due diligence on EVO Banco, people close to the sales process said.
The Bank of Spain has already accepted applications for Spanish banking licences from the two bidders, which will require regulatory capital to be kept in Spain and place limits on future dividend payments.
“If a deal materialises, it will be the first time a lender owned by Spain’s state bank rescue fund has been bought by a foreign investor since the start of a crisis that forced the Spanish government to request a European bailout”, a source told the news agency.
Since it division from its parent group, EVO has been incurring losses, although the divestment is likely to get a positive valuation of the bank, which serves approximately 250,000 clients, manages 80 bank offices and has nearly 600 staff.
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