Alex Trelinski
AN EXTRAORDINARY meeting of Sabadell Bank shareholders on Wednesday has overwhelming approved the sale of their UK subsidiary, TSB, to Santander.
99.6% of votes cast were in favour of the deal which means more money in Sabadell coffers to fend off the hostile bid launched by BBVA last year.
It will be down to shareholders to decide on whether to accept BBVA’s terms but they will get boosted dividends as a result of the TSB sale.
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Sabadell share values leapt by nearly 2% on the stock market after the vote result was declared.
The sale will raise between €3.1 and €3.3 billion and is scheduled to be completed in early 2026, with a €2.5 billion payment to shareholders.
Sabadell CEO, Cesar Gonzalez-Bueno said: “This is a very good deal for the bank and for the shareholders.”
The bank’s president, Josep Oliu, suggested that the TSB sale was nothing to do with the BBVA takeover bid.
He said it was being sold because it was an optimal time from the point of view of maximising a profit.
Last week, Sabadell said that it increased profits by 23% between January and June to €975 million- the best first half of a year in its history.
It said it aims to achieve a return of 16% by 2027 and pay dividends to shareholders totalling €6.3 billion over three years.
The Spanish government last month imposed strict conditions on a BBVA takeover of Sabadell, which is being challenged legally by BBVA.
The European Commission is also investigating the legality of the government’s decision.
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