Spanish savings banks restructure

A second group of Spanish savings banks has begun work to merge operations and establish a new bank following pressure from the government for the troubled sector to raise more capital and reveal its exposure to bad debt with greater transparency.

Unnim, a Catalan-based group formed by Caixa Manlleu, Caixa Sabadell and Caixa Terrassa – all savings banks or “cajas” – said in a statement that its board has agreed to begin the process of creating a listed bank.