€492m deal with Demetra and Logicom puts Eurobank in the running for 100% of Hellenic Bank

A milestone €492 million deal with Demetra Holdings and Logicom has put Eurobank in the running for 100% of Hellenic Bank.

The document of the public proposal that Eurobank submitted last July for the acquisition of the entire share capital of Hellenic Bank, where, at the same time, it disclosed in the most official way its strategic plan for the bank, stated, "Due to the presence of Eurobank in the Cypriot market through its subsidiary, Eurobank Cyprus Ltd, Eurobank may consider the possibility of merging the said subsidiary with Hellenic, in case it acquires a sufficient percentage."

The new agreement, which now allows Eurobank S.A. to proceed undividedly with its strategic planning for Hellenic Bank and especially in the merger of the bank with Eurobank Cyprus, was sealed late on 24 November and announced on the morning of 25 November.

Based on the agreement, Eurobank will acquire 88,064,705 Hellenic Bank shares (21.33%) from Demetra - currently the second largest shareholder in Hellenic - for a price of approximately €426 million and 13,729,704 Hellenic Bank shares (3.33%) from Logicom, for a price of approximately €66 million.

In total, the percentage it will acquire amounts to 24.66%.

This is considered to be an extremely important development, since with the completion of the transactions after receiving the necessary supervisory approvals, Eurobank will essentially take over 100% of Hellenic Bank and, by extension, absolute control of its ownership status. With the acquisition of the shares of Demetra and Logicom, Eurobank will own around 95% of Hellenic Bank.

It is noted in this regard, however, that acquiring more than 90% of its share capital, will be followed by the acquisition of the minority shares (squeeze out) which will lead to the acquisition of 100%.

It is recalled that on 7 November, Eurobank S.A., which currently owns 55.9% of Hellenic Bank, announced the conclusion of agreements with ETYK for the acquisition of the participation rate of the syndicate's funds totaling 12.8%. against a total price of approximately €243 million or €4.58 per share.

With the completion of this transaction, Eurobank's participation in the share capital of Hellenic Bank will rise to 68.81%.

It is also worth noting that Eurobank S.A., also on 7 November, announced the conclusion of contracts for the purchase and sale of ETYK treasury shares in Demetra, acquiring a percentage of 8.58% (17,152,353 shares) in the company, for a total price of approximately €32.4m. or €1.89 per share.

As mentioned above, the agreement reached with Demetra and Logicom is of pivotal importance for Eurobank, since it paves the way for the implementation of its development plan and for strategic moves for Hellenic Bank, such as the merger with Eurobank Cyprus.

This is a perspective-target that Eurobank CEO Fokion Karavias has repeatedly also publicly set as a key parameter of the strategic framework on the basis of which the group made the decision to invest in Hellenic Bank, in the past placing meaningful timelines for the implementation of said targeting in the "maturation of conditions".

These conditions have apparently matured possibly earlier than one would expect, with the 24 November agreement opening a new chapter and marking a new era, not only for Hellenic Bank, but also for the financial system of our country as a whole.

(Source: InBusinessNews)