Barcelona bank wants to be bigger private-client player in its home market. Barcelona-based Caja de Ahorros y Pensiones de Barcelona, better known as "La Caixa," plans to buy Morgan Stanley 's Spanish wealth-management business.

Winning bid

"Morgan Stanley's private banking division will strengthen our personal and private banking business and will deliver management systems, great customer service and one of Spain's leading professional teams," says La Caixa's general director Juan Maria Nin.

Morgan Stanley fields 430 private-banking specialists in Spain. They manage assets of around $13.3 billion.

Given the market's recent gyrations, La Caixa could end up paying less than the $886.5 million penciled in by the buyer and seller, according to media reports.

The deal, slated to close in the second quarter of 2008, is expected increase La Caixa's share of Spain's fund-management market from 5.5% to 7.5%.

Other companies said to have been eying Morgan Stanley's Spanish assets include Banco Sabadell, BNP Paribas, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria and Caja Madrid. -FWR

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