Barclays Bank SAU will be assimilated into CaixaBank after the two firms agreed to merge

The operation is subject to legal authorisations

• The merger through absorption will see Barclays Bank SAU clients and products assimilated into CaixaBank's existing structure, following its acquisition of Barclays' Spanish subsidiary on 2 January.
• Clients will not be required to take any action and will have full access to CaixaBank channels, as well as to the country's largest network of branches and ATMs.

The boards of directors of CaixaBank, Spain's leading bank by market share, and Barclays Bank, S.A.U, a 100%-owned subsidiary of CaixaBank since 2 January, both approved the merger today. The operation, which is subject to authorisation from the Ministry of Economics and Competition, will see Barclays' operations fully assimilated into CaixaBank, a bank presided over by Chairman Isidro Fainé and CEO Gonzalo Gortázar.

The merger will mean the disappearance of Barclays Bank S.A.U., as the absorbed company, with its assets transferred to CaixaBank, as the absorbing company, which acquires all rights and obligations held by the former.

Benefits for clients

The merger will see all Barclays Bank S.A.U. technology and operations incorporated into CaixaBank, an operation that is scheduled for completion in the second quarter of this year, subject to legal authorisation. The numbering of products will change, but all direct debits, charges and payments will be unaffected by the move, meaning no action will be required from Barclays' 550,000 customers.

These clients will also be able to operate via Línea Abierta, CaixaBank's online banking platform, using the same passwords as used to access the Barclays' electronic banking system. They will also benefit from Spain's largest network of branches. Once the merger is complete the 261 Barclays Bank S.A.U. branches in Spain will be incorporated into the CaixaBank network, which currently includes more than 5,000 branches.