Poland promises timely reply on UniCredito

The Polish government will reply to an EC enquiry about delays in the merger of Poland's Pekao SA and BPH banks within the demanded 7-day deadline, the Polish treasury ministry informed on Friday.

On Monday the EC gave the Polish authorities a week to explain their obstruction of a merger between the banks, both property of the Italian UniCredito.

On Thursday the government informed that PM Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz would probably meet UniCredito president Alessandro Profumo.

The APA news agency today quoted Italian media reports that Marcinkiewicz and Profumo could meet on Monday.

UniCredito spokesmen refused to discuss the meeting.

UniCredito owns 52.9 percent of Pekao and all of the German HVB bank, main shareholder in Poland's BPH. For the past several months the Italian group has been waiting for the Polish Banking Supervisory Commission's permission to merge Pekao and BPH.

Source: EuroPAP