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Case No COMP/M.7597 - SABADELL/ TSB

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REGULATION (EC) No 139/2004 MERGER PROCEDURE

Article 6(1)(b) NON-OPPOSITION Date: 18/05/2015

In electronic form on the EUR-Lex website under document number 32015M7597

Office for Publications of the European Union L-2985 Luxembourg

EUROPEAN COMMISSION

Brussels, 18.5.2015 C(2015) 3459 final

PUBLIC VERSION

SIMPLIFIED MERGER PROCEDURE

To the notifying party:

Dear Sirs,

Subject: Case M.7597 - SABADELL/ TSB Commission decision pursuant to Article 6(1)(b) of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 and Article 57 of the Agreement on the European Economic Area

1.On 20.04.2015, the European Commission received notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of the Merger Regulation by which Banco de Sabadell, S.A. ('Sabadell', Spain) acquires within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation, sole control of TSB Banking Group plc ('TSB', the United Kingdom), by way of a public bid.

The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:

-- for Sabadell: provision of banking and insurance services mainly in Spain.

1OJ L 24, 29.1.2004, p. 1 (the "Merger Regulation"). With effect from 1 December 2009, the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union ("TFEU") has introduced certain changes, such as the replacement of "Community" by "Union" and "common market" by "internal market". The terminology of the TFEU will be used throughout this decision.

2OJ L 1, 3.1.1994, p. 3 ("the EEA Agreement").

3OJ C 139, 28.04.2014, p. 3.

Commission européenne, DG COMP MERGER REGISTRY, 1049 Bruxelles, BELGIQUE Europese Commissie, DG COMP MERGER REGISTRY, 1049 Brussel, BELGIË Tel: +32 229-91111. Fax: +32 229-64301. E-mail: COMP-MERGER-REGISTRY@ec.europa.eu.

-- for TSB: provision of retail banking services to individuals; corporate banking services to small and medium-sized enterprises; and credit card payment services, all in the United Kingdom.

3.After examination of the notification, the European Commission has concluded that the notified operation falls within the scope of the Merger Regulation and of paragraph 5(c) of the Commission Notice on a simplified procedure for treatment of certain concentrations under Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004.

4.For the reasons set out in the Notice on a simplified procedure, the European Commission has decided not to oppose the notified operation and to declare it compatible with the internal market and with the EEA Agreement. This decision is adopted in application of Article 6(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation and Article 57 of the EEA Agreement.

For the Commission (Signed) Alexander ITALIANER Director-General

OJ C 366, 14.12.2013, p. 5.

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