Spain's economy minister Elena Salgado said today the country's troubled savings banks could avoid a second wave of mergers if they keep carrying out necessary restructuring.
The country's unlisted savings banks, which took the biggest hit from the country's property bust after a decade-long bubble, are immersed in a government-driven consolidation process to cut their numbers from 45 to under 20.
"If they do their homework, we can avoid a second wave of mergers," Ms Salgado said in an interview on Spanish television.
The savings banks must also get their new management structures in place by year-end, Ms Salgado said.
"If not, the Bank of Spain will intervene in the process," she said.
Many of the savings banks have received funding from the government fund FROB to help them with their restructuring.
Reuters