Meloni and Sánchez, the bank twins
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Madrid's prescriptions on BBVA-Sabadell, like Rome's on Unicredit-Bpm: the two prime ministers share a somewhat casual use of the golden power on banking operations. A dangerous drift for the Banking Union and the integration of capital markets
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What do Giorgia Meloni and Pedro Sánchez have in common? The somewhat casual use of the golden power on banking operations. The Socialist government in Madrid has put an obstacle in the way of BBVA's acquisition of Banco Sabadell: the €14 billion operation can only go ahead on the condition that "for the next three years the two companies remain distinct legal entities and maintain separate assets, as well as autonomy in the management of their activities" , said Economy Minister Carlos Cuerpo. The ban can be extended for another two years, up to five. This is a hard blow to the operation that aims to create value through the integration of the two groups, forming a giant with 140,000 employees worldwide that combines BBVA's international projection (especially in Latin America) and Sabadell's strong position in Spanish small and medium-sized enterprises. But the offer from BBVA (the second largest Spanish group) is considered hostile by the management of Banco Sabadell (the fourth largest Spanish group) and by politicians, due to fears of employment repercussions and territorial pressure from Catalonia, a region where Sabadell is very present and which is crucial for the support of the shaky Sánchez government.
It is a story that is very reminiscent of the Italian one: the public exchange offer by Unicredit (the second largest Italian group) to acquire Banco Bpm (the fourth largest Italian bank), considered hostile by the management and the Meloni government, which imposed restrictions and requirements on Unicredit. Similarly, in Germany the Merz government (and before him Scholz) is obstructing Unicredit's offer for Commerzbank, for the same political reasons, more market-related. It is a dangerous drift, because it means the definitive death in Europe of the Banking Union and the integration of capital markets : if governments even prevent national acquisitions, how can we expect transnational ones? But in this way, how does Europe think it can compete with the United States on a global level?
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