Banco Popular, Pastor finalizing merger agreement: sources
Trading in banks' shares suspended
Banco Popular and Banco Pastor are finalizing a merger agreement that will reinforce the former's position as Spain's fifth biggest lender, financial sources said Friday.
The National Securities Commission (CNMV) on Friday suspended trading in both stocks pending clarification of their intentions. At the time, Popular was up 1.34 percent, while Pastor had gained 4.84 percent. The combined lender will have assets of 174 billion euros.
Popular is considerable bigger than Pastor. It earned 305 million euros in the first half of this year, compared with only 38 million for Pastor. Founded in 1776, Galicia-based Pastor is one of Spain's oldest banks.
