Axia-Alpha Finance has joined the chorus of observers who see the National Bank of Greece making a move for Bank of Cyprus, while arguing that any such plan may run into resistance from the Cypriot government.
In a report this week on the Greek banking sector as a field of interest for cross-border acquisition deals, Axia-AF notes that media reports in recent years have pointed to the possibility of an NBG-Bank of Cyprus merger.
It went on to say that the two lenders have some common characteristics, such as similarly strong financial reports with liquidity and capital adequacy indexes, which are among the highest in the region, while also being politically sensitive. The latter stems from the fact that National is the only systemic bank in Greece where the state still has a stake (9%), while Bank of Cyprus is the only lender of note in Cyprus not to belong to a Greek or foreign bank. Nevertheless, the report adds, one should not rule out a combination with another local or foreign bank.
BoC’s branches in Greece were absorbed by Piraeus Bank in the spring of 2013; NBG had also made an offer to absorb them.
