The Catalan bank accelerates sale of non-performing loans and mortgages as part of its strategy to improve asset quality, says El Confidencial.

Banco Sabadell has recently completed the sale of approximately €435 million in loans, according to sources cited by Bloomberg. Spain’s fourth-largest bank is currently advancing a project known as “Project Medusa,” which involves the disposal of €260 million in unsecured loans.

These transactions are part of Sabadell’s broader strategy to clean up its balance sheet. The bank has ramped up its divestment of troubled assets as BBVA continues its takeover attempt, which saw a revised offer last week — a roughly 10% increase — in a final effort to close the deal after more than a year of negotiations.

BBVA is now proposing one ordinary BBVA share for every 4.8376 Sabadell shares, valuing the Catalan lender at around €17.1 billion — about a 2% premium over Sabadell’s market value as of last Friday.

A notable transaction within this clean-up includes the sale of €100 million in non-performing mortgages to Axactor ASA. Four additional smaller portfolios, each worth approximately €20 million, were acquired by firms such as Balbec Capital and Hipoges, the latter backed by KKR.

Original Story: El Confidencial
Edition and translation: Prime Yield