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Banco Sabadell Returning to Portugal: Branch to Open in Lisbon in 2018
5 December 2017
Banco Sabadell is preparing to return to Portugal. The Spanish bank, which is based in Sabadell, Catalonia, is expected to open an office in Portugal in the first quarter of 2018 after the financial institution left Portugal a year ago when it sold its 4.08% share in BCP. The new office, which will be located in the centre of Lisbon, will concentrate all corporate operations with Portuguese and Spanish companies.
The news was reported by elEconomista, quoting Santiago Tiana, who will head the new branch. Mr Tiana explained, however, that the bank will not be on the street. Although legally constituted as a branch to carry out operations in the banking sector, the office will not have an external presence, as a visible presence is not expected to confer any additional advantage. The executive stated that any visibility would come from customers who already know the bank and word of mouth.
“Our business will focus on corporate operations, project financing and credit,” said Santiago Tiana, adding that Banco de Portugal gave Sabadell its authorisation to conduct business in the country last week. “We want to maintain a close link with clients whose countries have a strong relationship with Spain,” said the director of the Lisbon office, adding that there are already many Portuguese companies that are clients of the bank in Spain.
The new offices, with an area of 500 square meters (sqm), will be located on the Avenida da Liberdade, near the Marquês de Pombal. It will have 12 employees, although they plan to expand the team to around 20 people over the next five years.
Original Story: Idealista
Translation: Richard Turner