BBVA to buy back 662 branches from Merlin for €2bn

BBVA to buy back 662 branches from Merlin for €2bn

Spanish bank BBVA has closed a deal with Merlin to buy back 662 branches in Spain.

BBVA sold the properties between 2009 and 2010 under a sale and leaseback agreement to Tree Inversiones Inmobiliarias (currently owned by Merlin).

BBVA has agreed to pay €1.99 billion for 100% of the shares of Tree Inversiones Inmobiliarias, which owns the properties (659 branches and three individual buildings), in a transaction that is estimated to have an initial capital consumption of -7 basis points.

BBVA said it is also expected to generate an initial net impact on the income statement of approximately -200 million euros, once the transaction is completed, which is forecasted to be at the end of the second quarter. ”These impacts will be more than offset by the cumulative savings expected when this transaction is executed.”

”This deal gives the bank greater flexibility in the management of its network of offices in Spain – as it resumes ownership – and generates significant economic savings between now and the date the agreement is set to end in 2040, despite increasing inflation (the current contract includes a clause according to which rental incomes are adjusted annually at 1.5 times the inflation rate),” said in the statement.