I think Luis is missing the point here by arguing this is actually a good thing cos the free market has come up with solution. Banco Popular has a history of being irresponsible with its customers money which is why the bank was insolvent and requiring intervention in the first place. All this "bail in" has done is shift the risk onto Santander. All that bad debt hasn't miraculously disappeared. If I was a Santander customer or shareholder, I'd be very concerned about this move since the deal was rushed through in 2 days with no due diligence.
I encourage you to check out Simon Black's review of this event: http://bit.ly/2r3hk9y .
Given the risk to Santander - which everyone seems to be ignoring - I also find it amazing that it's share price rose on the news. This FT article provides a good summary of the deal http://on.ft.com/2r9VTCW
i dont think they would go blindly into buying a lot of debt if they didnt know they could make money on it. to me, they just bought a bunch more buildings where santander can bank from and millions of customers.
Maybe. But I fail to see how they could have done any proper due diligence on this deal given the timing of it. Time will tell I suppose.
Sounds like back-room, handshake deals with someone who would "guarantee" to cover their losses. (cough... government!) No sane and responsible company would take on that much risk without someone covering the downside (or threatening them). Oh wait... financial industry... sane and responsible, I see the disconnect now!
@bhp Exactly. It's not like banks are known for being trustworthy and responsible.
well, you can tell when your competitor is not doing well and you can plan ahead on absorbing them and calculating the risk. they are banks, for gods sake. that's what they do for a living hehe.