CaixaBank to buy Civica for 979.4 million euros: source

Spain’s CaixaBank will buy rival Banca Civica for almost one billion euros, a merger making it the country’s largest bank in terms of assets, a source close to the negotiations said late Monday.

The boards of the two banks were meeting on Monday to approve the 979.4 million euro ($1.3 billion) deal and are due to make an official announcement within hours, the source added on condition of anonymity.

CaixaBank will pay 1.97 euros per share for Banca Civica, the source said.

CaixaBank is Spain’s third-largest by market capital and was born July 1 last year when Caixa savings bank group listed its retail banking activities.

Banca Civica also made its debut in July, to a lukewarm welcome from investors, after it was formed from the merger in 2010 of Caja Navarra, Cajasol, Caja de Burgos and CajaCanarias.

In January, CaixaBank said an expansion could be desirable, fuelling market rumours that it would merge with another bank, Bankia.