Jones Lang LaSalle


Assessing Sovereign deal

The chairman of the Spanish bank Santander Central Hispano, Emilio Botin, said he expects to close the deal soon to pay $2.4 billion for a 19.8 percent stake in Sovereign Bancorp, and defended the transaction against the criticism of some of Sovereign's shareholders.

The purchase would make Santander the single biggest shareholder in Sovereign Bancorp.
"We expect to close this deal in the next few months, before the summer. ... When Santander does a deal, it always defends the interests of minority shareholders. ... this deal is good also for Sovereign shareholders," Botin said.

The Santander investment, which Sovereign will use to take over another bank, Independence Community Bank, needs the approval of various U.S. regulatory authorities.

The deal has come under fire from some Sovereign shareholders who have complained it skirts corporate governance regulations and is value-destroying. The New York Stock Exchange cleared the deal after Santander and Sovereign modified some of the original terms.

The dissident shareholders have appealed to the Securities and Exchange Commission, which is considering whether or not it will intervene in the case.

-- Dow Jones Newswires