Spain-Based CaixaBank Affirmed Upon Merger Completion; Bankia Upgraded To 'BBB+', Rating Subsequently Withdrawn

On March 26, 2021, Spain's CaixaBank S.A. completed its merger with Bankia S.A., after receiving regulatory approval. All assets and liabilities of Bankia were transferred to CaixaBank and Bankia ceased to exist as a separate legal entity. We affirmed our ratings on CaixaBank, which has become by far the largest domestic bank. In the long term, this should support the bank's profitability prospects, which came under heightened pressure during the pandemic. CaixaBank's financial strength should be sufficient to cushion the effect of the acquisition on its credit profile. We raised our long-term ratings on Bankia by one notch, mirroring those on CaixaBank, and removed them from CreditWatch with positive implications, where they had been placed on Sept. 23, 2020. Subsequently,

...March 29, 2021 - On March 26, 2021, Spain's CaixaBank S.A. completed its merger with Bankia S.A., after receiving regulatory approval. All assets and liabilities of Bankia were transferred to CaixaBank and Bankia ceased to exist as a separate legal entity. - We affirmed our ratings on CaixaBank, which has become by far the largest domestic bank. In the long term, this should support the bank's profitability prospects, which came under heightened pressure during the pandemic. CaixaBank's financial strength should be sufficient to cushion the effect of the acquisition on its credit profile. - We raised our long-term ratings on Bankia by one notch, mirroring those on CaixaBank, and removed them from CreditWatch with positive implications, where they had been placed on Sept. 23, 2020. Subsequently, we withdrew our ratings on Bankia. - The stable outlook on CaixaBank indicates that the additional risk stemming from weaker-than-expected economic prospects in Spain and the financial impact and...

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