The Hungarian Competition Authority and the National Bank of Hungary have granted regulatory approval for the transfer of the Hungarian business unit of AXA Bank to OTP Bank, it was announced today.
According to the Budapest Business Journal, OTP Bank announced the news in a statement published on the Budapest Stock Exchange website this morning.
The purchase agreement includes the transfer of retail credit and savings, as well as the corporate portfolio and employees of AXA Bank Europeʼs Hungarian branch.
The integration process is expected to be completed at the end of 2016, based on an earlier statement by OTP.
The GVH already cleared the takeover in June, observing that the merger should not have any negative horizontal impact on competition as there are several other big international rivals on the market. AXA has not tried actively to acquire new clients since 2011 and its market share is insignificant, it added.