Spain’s CaixaBank launches full takeover of Portugal’s BPI

Spain’s third-biggest lender CaixaBank on Monday announced plans to launch a takeover bid for the 56 percent of Portugal’s fourth-biggest bank BPI that it does not already control.

Barcelona-based CaixaBank said it would offer 1.113 euros in cash per share, the bank said in a statement, an offer which values the Portuguese bank at around 1.6 billion euros ($1.8 billion).

“The tender offer price is in line with the volume-weighted average of Banco BPI’s share price during the last six months,” the statement said.

CaixaBank said the offer was conditional on obtaining over 50 percent of BPI’s share capital and the Portuguese bank lifting a 20 percent cap on shareholders’ voting rights.

The cap on voting rights has hampered CaixaBank’s effort to exercise more control over BPI.

Portugal’s cabinet on Thursday tabled a decree that bans limitations on voting rights in publicly-listed firms.

The decree still needs to be approved by Portugal’s president.

The announcement of the takeover bid comes after BPI announced over the weekend that its talks with Angolan investor Isabel dos Santos over the sale of her stake in the Portuguese bank had broken down.

Dos Santos, the daughter of Angolan President Jose Eduardo dos Santos, owns 18.6 percent of BPI through holding firm Santoro Finance.

CaixaBank, which first invested in BPI in 1995, had tried to buy BPI in February of last year, but it withdrew its offer after Isabel dos Santos refused the lifting of the cap on shareholder voting rights.

Trading in BPI has been suspended since April 8, when it closed at 1.191 euros per share.

Shares in CaixaBank were down 3.36 percent at 2.59 euros in late morning trade. The Ibex-35 index of most-traded Spanish shares was down 0.45 percent.