Banco Santander has completed the acquisition of Bank Zachodni
WBK, Poland’s third largest bank by profits and number of branches, after closing the
takeover offer with an acceptance rate of 95.6% of the institution’s capital. The offer, made in
February in accordance with the applicable law in Poland, was part of Banco Santander’s
agreement with Allied Irish Banks (AIB) to acquire its stake in BZ WBK.
Bank Zachodni WBK will join Grupo Santander on April 1st, once the takeover offer and the
transfer of shares are executed. The acquisition of the above has a total cost of EUR 3,989
million. Additionally, as also previously announced, Santander acquired the 50% that stake
AIB had in BZ WBK Asset Management, for EUR 150 million in cash, so the total investment
related to this transaction is EUR 4,139 million.
Banco Santander Chairman Emilio Botin said: “With the acquisition of Bank Zachodni, Poland
has become a main market for Banco Santander. Zachodni’s focus on commercial banking,
its high market share, great management team, high efficiency, and good solvency and
liquidity positions fit very well within the Banco Santander business model. I am confident that
Poland will soon become a growth engine for Banco Santander.”
After this transaction, which consumes 0.57 points, the core capital of Banco Santander will
be 9.1%, up from 8.8% at the close of 2010. Bank Zachodni WBK will have a positive
contribution on Banco Santander’s profit per share from this year.
BZ WBK, with headquarters in Wroclaw (Poland), has 9,840 employees and 527 branches
throughout the country, representing a market share of 8%. In 2010, it registered a net profit
of EUR 244 million.
A retail and commercial bank formed by the merger in 2001 of Bank Zachodni and
Wielkopolski Bank Kredytowy, BZ WBK has EUR 10.63 billion in deposits and EUR 8.56
billion in loans, market shares of 6.4% and 4.7%, respectively. The market share of the
combined business of the bank in the Polish market is 5.8%.
Poland, a member of the European Union, is one of Central and Eastern Europe’s most
attractive markets, constituting 40% of the region’s population and GDP of this area, with
excellent prospects for medium- and long-term growth. Banco Santander has been present in
Poland since 2004 through its Santander Consumer division. In February 2011, Santander
Consumer has completed the integration of the consumer finance business of AIG in the
country, creating a unit of EUR 3.6 billion in loans, EUR 1.2 billion in deposits and 213
branches.