BRUSSELS (MNI) – Spain has not made a formal request to tap a E30
billion tranche of Eurozone aid for the country’s banking sector set
aside for emergencies, a spokesman for the European Commission said on
Thursday.
Spanish media have been reporting over the last couple of weeks
that Madrid will soon be making a formal request to draw on the aid to
help nationalized banks including Bankia, Caixa Catalunya, Novagalicia
and Banco de Valencia.
In order for Spain to access the contingency funds, authorities
would have to present a “justified” and “quantified” assessment showing
that a recipient bank is close to bankruptcy and would not be able to
survive until November when the commission’s bottom-up analysis of
individual bank’s capital requirements is completed.
When evaluating any request EU officials would look at both a
bank’s needs as well as the potential consequences of the bank’s
failure, an EU official said. The request would have to be approved by
the Commission, EU finance officials and the European Central Bank.
Eurozone finance ministers have set aside up to E100 billion in
total to recapitalize struggling Spanish banks.
–Brussels newsroom: +324-9522-8374; pkoh@marketnews.com
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