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Editorial: El País

May 10, 2024

  • BBVA's attempted acquisition of Sabadell could harm competition in the Spanish banking market, which is already affected by mergers.
  • BBVA's previous efforts to acquire Sabadell failed, creating tensions between the two entities.
  • The proposal faces political and regulatory resistance, including opposition from the government and the Bank of Spain.
  • The loss of Sabadell would harm financing for SMEs as it's one of the few entities that caters to this sector.
  • The operation would consolidate market power in the hands of a few entities, creating a potentially damaging oligopoly.
  • BBVA already faces reputation issues and the acquisition could exacerbate these problems and pose a risk to its stability and governance.
  • The economic and political consensus seems to justify the rejection of this acquisition.

Conclusion: Given the potential threat to competition, governance issues at BBVA, and possible detrimental impacts on SMEs and employment, BBVA's hostile bid for Sabadell seems problematic.