Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria's (BBVA) 13 billion euro ($14.8 billion) bid for Banco Sabadell has been approved by Spain's antitrust agency under strict conditions, Bloomberg News reported Wednesday, citing sources with knowledge of the matter.
The government now has 15 days to decide whether to review the deal and 30 more days to approve or block it if it proceeds, the media outlet reported.
The government can reportedly still block the legal merger, limiting BBVA to only hold a stake in Sabadell.
The deal terms are expected to be manageable for BBVA, which had said it would walk away if the conditions were too strict, Bloomberg reported.
BBVA and Spain's CNMC did not immediately respond to requests for a comment from MT Newswires.
Shares of the BBVA were down about 2.6% in recent trading.
(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)
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