BBVA to proceed with Sabadell takeover bid with at least 30% of shares

The Basque bank, BBVA, has announced it is planning to proceed with the hostile takeover bid of Catalan Banc Sabadell, only if it obtains at least 30% of the shares.

The information was released by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the stock regulatory body that green-lighted the bid.

The document will now be submitted to Spain's market regulator (CNMV).

The text also points out that if the Basque bank acquires at least 30% of the Banc Sabadell shares, but less than 50%, "it will be forced" to file a new takeover bid for the rest of the market value within one month.

SEC's approval arrives while BBVA is waiting for Spain's CNMV to publish the paperwork on the hostile takeover bid. In the document, the Basque bank must detail all the different procedures it would work on if the bid is successful. 

Once published, there will be between 30 and 70 days for the over 200,000 Banc Sabadell shareholders to decide if they accept BBVA's offer and sell their shares, or not.

In late June, BBVA confirmed that it will continue with its takeover bid for Banc Sabadell despite the new conditions imposed by the Spanish government.

Among the new conditions set, the strictest effectively bans the merger for the next three years.