Intesa To Buy Ukraine’s Pravex Bank

KIEV, Ukraine -- Intesa Sanpaolo on Monday agreed to pay €504 million ($748 million) for a 100 per cent stake in Ukraine’s Pravex Bank, in a deal the Italian bank said would give it a foothold in a fast growing market.

Intesa Sanpaolo Chairman Giovanni Bazoli
The acquisition follows Intesa’s failed attempt to buy Ukrainian bank Ukrsotsbank last year.

Earlier this year, Intesa’s main Italian rival, UniCredit Group, closed a €1.5 billion ($2.2 billion) deal giving it a 94.2 per cent stake in Ukrsotsbank, which is ranked as one of Ukraine’s five largest banks.

”With this acquisition the Intesa Sanpaolo Group continues implementing its strategy of selective expansion in Central and South-Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean Basin, where it already enjoys strategic coverage through its local retail and commercial subsidiaries,” Intesa said.

Pravex has a network of about 560 branch offices, the sixth largest in Ukraine, according to Intesa.

The sale marks the continued expansion of European banking groups into Ukraine. A flurry of acquisitions during the past three years has increased the presence of foreign banking groups in Ukraine in terms of net assets from below 10 per cent to more than 35 per cent.

Intesa said its acquisition of Pravex is expected to close within months, after approval is given from authorities in Italy and Ukraine.

The final purchase price is to be adjusted taking into consideration Pravex’s IFRS net book value at closing.

Source: Financial Times