Mr Juan Inciarte couldn't have wished for better timing yesterday.Just as the executive vice-president of Santander Central Hispano (SCH) prepared to present details of his £8.6 billion (€12.6 billion) takeover of Abbey National, HBOS announced its decision not to make a rival bid.
His words about how quickly SCH's deal would be cleared rang even more true. "This is the only offer on the table that creates certainty, value and immediacy. We are determined to close this deal and HBOS's statement puts wind in our sails," Mr Inciarte told analysts and investors in a series of presentations in London.
SCH outlined a tight timetable for its offer, further increasing the chances of closing the deal. Documents detailing the terms will be posted to Abbey investors on Friday with the aim of completing the deal by November 12th.
"Closing the largest ever cross-border transaction in Europe in less than three months shows our determination and commitment to this deal," Mr Inciarte said.
In an effort to charm investors, Mr Inciarte and his top executive team said the combined SCH/Abbey would have a London listing and investors would be able to receive dividends in sterling. "The combined group will have more than 3 million shareholders and will be one of the most liquid stocks in Europe," he said.
SCH will provide a free share dealing facility for Abbey shareholders who hold less than 2,000 Abbey shares.
Mr Inciarte also moved to win over institutional investors by revising its revenue synergies from the takeover from €110 million to about €220 million before tax by 2007.
These would be achieved by accelerating the development of Abbey's underleveraged franchise. "Abbey has the lowest revenue per customer of UK banks and we have to increase this," Mr Inciarte said, adding that SCH would look at consumer loans.
The cost savings, however, remained unchanged, with SCH expecting to achieve €450 million per annum within three years. In the first year it would achieve €150 million, €300 million in the second and €450 million by the third.
