UniCredito Italiano intends to merge the banks BPH and Pekao SA by the end of 2006 by transferring the entire property of BPH to Pekao SA in return for shares, the National Bank of Poland announced. The merger process will be directed by the management boards of both banks, who will appoint a steering committee for that purpose, headed by Leszek Balcerowicz, CEO of Bank Pekao.

The NBP also announced that UCI had declared it would not change BPH’s name before merging with Pekao SA. The merged bank will continue activity under the name “Bank Pekao SA” or “under a name which constitutes a combination of the firms. On April 5, at the Prime Minister’s Chancellery, an agreement between the Polish government and UniCredito was made for the sale of 200 of the 477 branches of Bank BPH, as well as the brand name of the bank.

The remaining branches will be incorporated into Bank Pekao SA and employees will receive two-year guarantees of employment. The agreement also gives the treasury ministry the right to nominate two members of BPH’s supervisory board. The final signing of the agreement has been scheduled for Wed, April 12.