Novo Banco: Lone Star invites Amorim, Sonae, Jerónimo Martins and Violas
The American fund is inviting Portuguese corporate groups to become shareholders in Novo Banco. Amorim, Sonae, Jerónimo Martins and Violas are on the list.
The Lone Star fund is determined to acquire Novo Banco. And in their efforts in showing the Portuguese government that are not just a vulture fund, they are inviting Portuguese companies to become shareholders in the institution within the acquisition process of the resolution bank. Amorim, Sonae, Jerónimo Martins and the Violas Group are among the recipients of a letter sent by the fund.
In that letter, quoted by many national news media, the North-American fund invites “the possible co-investors who consider participating, along with Lone Star, in the long-term control of Novo Banco and, therefore, share the benefits resultant from the predicted restructuring and recapitalization“.
The corporate groups Amorim, Sonae and Jerónimo Martins are some of the companies the Fund contacted, being that the Violas Group, which has sold its stake in BPI in CaixaBank’s takeover bid, was also contacted.
Lone Star’s invite was made to reassure the bank will not be divided to later be sold (as vulture funds are know to usually do) and that it will continue to serve the Portuguese economy, namely by financing enterprises: the letter sent by the Fund mentions a yearly six billion euros credit concession to Portuguese companies, out of which four billion are aimed at Portuguese small and medium enterprises (SME).
