Outsider Santander provisional winner of Spanish banking battle

- Spanish bank Santander is buying the British branch of Banco Sabadell for €3 billion.
- Sabadell was in fact a takeover target for BBVA, a competitor of Santander.
- With the money from the takeover, Sabadell can strengthen its defense and pay additional dividends.
Spanish bank BBVA's attempt to acquire its smaller peer Banco Sabadell has taken an unexpected turn. Santander, Spain's largest bank that stayed out of the picture for a year and a half, has bought a major part of Sabadell. That leaves BBVA out of the running.
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