March 30 (SeeNews) - Slovenian lender Nova Kreditna Banka Maribor (NKBM) said on Wednesday it has become the sole owner of Postna Banka Slovenije (PBS) after acquiring a 0.8844% equity stake in the company it did not already own from Posta Slovenije.
The management boards of both banks signed an agreement concerning the acquisition of PBS by NKBM on Tuesday, thereby taking another significant step in the process of integrating PBS into NKBM, the lender said in filing with the Ljubljan bourse.
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"The merger of PBS with NKBM is one of the most strategically important projects undertaken as part of the consolidation of the NKBM Group," NKBM noted.
The acquisition will become legally effective on the day it is entered into the court register, which will be possible after obtaining relevant consent from the European Central Bank and/or the Bank of Slovenia.
The name of the merged bank will be NKBM, with its head office in Maribor.
"This merger will make it possible for NKBM to further strengthen its position as one of the leading universal banks in Slovenia and to take an important step towards gradually becoming focused on its principal activity, banking. This is also one of the key commitments arising from NKBM's restructuring programme," NKBM also said.
NKBM was rescued by the government in Ljubljana alongside peers NLB and Abanka in late 2013 when the tiny Alpine state narrowly avoided an international bailout. At the time, NKBM was the nation's second largest lender.
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