BBVA’s Hostile Takeover of Sabadell Set to Begin on Monday

Spanish bank BBVA said Friday its hostile takeover bid for Banco Sabadell will begin Monday after receiving approval from Spain’s market regulator. The offer, valued at €14.9 billion (MX$326 billion), will run for 30 days, giving Sabadell shareholders until Oct. 7 to tender their shares. Results are expected a week later. If completed, the merger would create Spain’s second-largest bank by assets, with more than €1 trillion, behind Caixabank. BBVA aims to secure a majority of voting rights, representing 49.3% of Sabadell’s shares.

BBVA said the combination would generate €900 million in cost savings, higher than the previous estimate of €850 million. However, those synergies are now projected for 2029 after the Spanish government delayed a full merger for at least three years.

Sabadell’s board has 10 business days from Sept. 8 to respond to the offer. Minority shareholders, who hold about half of Sabadell’s capital, will play a decisive role in the outcome.

The US Securities and Exchange Commission also cleared the offer, allowing BBVA to lower the acceptance threshold to 30%. In that scenario, the bank would be required to launch a second cash tender for the remaining shares within a month.

BBVA’s current proposal includes one newly issued ordinary share and €0.70 in cash for every 5.5483 ordinary shares of Sabadell. Shares of Sabadell have been trading above the original 30% premium offered in April 2024, outperforming BBVA since the announcement.

“Now is the time to join the union with BBVA, the best possible partner, a European leader in growth and profitability,” Carlos Torres Vila, Chairman, BBVA, said in a statement on the bank’s website.