The sale process for Novo Banco is dragging on with the bidders for the loss-making business now having until November 4th to submit their absolutely final offers.
Novo Banco was created in 2014 as part of the Banco Espírito Santo ‘rescue’ package that saw the Resolution Fund and the taxpayer contribute €5 billion to save the bank that had been brought to its knees under Ricardo Salgado's particular brand of management.
The delay before announcing the winner will give the Bank of Portugal time to mull over the last minute bid from Minsheng Financial Holdings, the Chinese bank using former Espírito Santo clan member José Maria do Espírito Santo Silva Ricciardi to ‘advise’ on the process.
Those still interested in bidding are the Portuguese banks BPI and BCP, Apollo-Centerbridge, Lone Star and latterly, Minsheng Financial Holding.
The Minsheng bid should have been rejected as it was outside the framework insisted on for the other candidates but the Bank of Portugal has allowed the bid to go ahead, probably due to the involvement of Ricciardi who currently heads up China’s Haitong Bank but whose undeclared end game is to run Novo Banco.
BPI, BCP, Apollo-Centerbridge and Lone Star have submitted bids to buy 100% of Novo Banco’s stock but Minsheng Financial Holdings want to buy half and sell the rest on the open market.