UBS, which is acting as an advisor to BBVA in the takeover bid for Banco Sabadell, has declared to the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV) that it holds a 3.15% stake in the capital, mostly through various financial instruments. However, according to the newspaper La Información, this seems to be just the tip of the iceberg. UBS is reportedly in a position to add more than 7% of Sabadell’s shares through its broker and asset management firm, amounting to 382 million shares valued at around €730 million at the current trading prices of the bank. The bulk of this concentration is through investment funds and third-party portfolios.
Morningstar, a firm specializing in aggregating such data, places UBS ahead of indexed fund firms like Dimensional Fund Advisor (DFA), which would control 3.35% of the capital, Vanguard Group (2.8%), or the also American Massachusetts Financial Services (1.7%), according to data as of the end of August. The CNMV registry lists BlackRock as the largest shareholder group with 6.61% of Sabadell’s capital.
Mexican investor David Martínez Guzmán is the individual with the most shares in Sabadell, holding about 202 million or 3.49% through the company Fintech Europe SARL. Norges Bank, custodian of Norway’s sovereign wealth fund investments, controls another 1.98%, according to the CNMV. Other intermediaries like Goldman Sachs, hired by Sabadell, report 1% to the supervisor, while Morgan Stanley holds 1.5% on behalf of some hedge funds like Qube RT, which has 1% of the bank.
After five full months since the plan for BBVA to absorb Sabadell through a share takeover was revealed, the operation is still pending approval from the CNMV and the National Markets and Competition Commission (CNMC) to proceed, allowing Sabadell’s shareholders to decide whether to sell their shares. Several of these shareholders are common between both banks: BlackRock, Vanguard, and Norges Bank control nearly 10% of Sabadell and almost 20% of BBVA, positioning them as decisive players.
UBS, advisor to BBVA, announces during takeover bid that it holds more than 3% of Sabadell
