• Banca.CaixaBank and Bankia prepare an imminent merger accelerated by the coronavirus crisis

The possible merger of Bankia and CaixaBank has generated a barrage of questions and doubts in all senses, and also for the clients of both entities.

Although the operation is still in development and although there is nothing definitive, many consumers wonder what could happen to their savings and the products they have contracted with any of them.

With all caution, some organizations try to

shed light on many of those doubts

: what will happen to my accounts, or to my cards, or to the mortgage.

We try to clarify some of them:

Is it a positive operation for the consumer?

From the Association of Financial Users (

Asufin

) they do not see it too clear, especially from the point of view of the competition.

They assure that the hypothetical merger "supposes an important movement of bank concentration that is worrying and limits competition" and that "it generates entities that are too big to fail (too big to fail), which always represents a risk for the client".

According to the organization, both entities have a high degree of litigation due to the sale of mortgages and other financial products with abusive clauses that have been declared void in the courts, such as multi-currency, in the case of CaixaBank, due to the absorption of a large part of the set of savings banks, or the floor clause, in that of Bankia.

"In addition, these are the entities that, as a whole, marketed the largest number of mortgages referenced in the controversial IRPH index, keep them alive and are the subject of legal battle at this time," they add.

What will happen to my account number?

As explained from

HelpMyCash

, a merger scenario would imply that both the IBAN of the bank account and the number of debit cards associated with the account would remain temporarily intact.

"However, this may become a temporary measure until the merger is implemented and clients have adapted to the new situation. Then, the IBAN will change, in which case the bank would give advance notice to notify the change," they assure .

And with my direct debits?

As for the receipts and direct debits in the account, it is to be expected that they will remain intact and that the bank resulting from the merger will take care of the pertinent direct debits.

However, you must provide the new IBAN for new payments and notify your company of the change in IBAN for direct debit of the payroll.

Could the conditions of my account change?

Without losing sight of the fact that we are talking in conditional all the time, waiting for the operation to finally be executed, the entity could change them.

"Legally, the bank has the power to modify the conditions of an account when it deems it appropriate, but it must always notify at least 2 months in advance," they point out from the company.

What about the deposits?

Deposits, unlike what happens with accounts and cards, have contracts of defined duration, so that both CaixaBank and Bankia, regardless of the final result of their commercial agreement, must respect the conditions of all fixed terms contracted in both banks.

Therefore, they would continue with the same profitability until the termination of their contract.

Of course, at the time of renewing the product, the new conditions present in the bank resulting from the merger would apply.

And the mortgage?

As specified in HelpyCash, "if we have a mortgage contracted with Bankia or CaixaBank, the contract will remain unchanged after the merger. Therefore, the conditions will be the same as before: the term, the interest rate, the additional products to reward you, commissions, etc. ".

However, in the case of the products to obtain the bonus, their conditions could be modified if they are not set out in the mortgage deed or in the service contract itself.

For example, annual insurance premiums could become more expensive or cheaper, new commissions could be added to the card after renewal ...

What about credit cards?

As credit cards have an indefinite duration contract (to the contract of what happens with mortgages, deposits or credits), we could see changes in the conditions of credit cards in the event that the eventual merger occurs.

"If we are Bankia customers and Caixabank absorbs its commercial brand, then it is very likely that the conditions of our credit cards will change and it is probable that the new entity will send us a new card with an account number associated with the new bank. Instead , if the brands are maintained or we are Caixabank clients, there should be no changes in conditions associated with the merger of the entities ", they explain from HelpMyCash.

However, in accordance with Law 16/2009 on payment services, the bank must inform us through any durable means of any change in the conditions of any product with a minimum of two months in advance.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

Know more

  • economy

  • Bankia

EmpresasCaixaBank and Bankia soar on the stock market after announcing that they are studying their next merger

EconomyCaixaBank and Bankia prepare an imminent merger accelerated by the coronavirus crisis

Coronavirus Fear in Brussels for the effects of a second wave of Covid-19 infections in Spain

See links of interest

  • Last News

  • Programming

  • English translator

  • Work calendar

  • Daily horoscope

  • Santander League Standings

  • League schedule

  • Movies TV

  • 2019 cut notes

  • Topics

  • Germany - Spain, live

  • Stage 7: Millau - Lavaur, live