Canada's Bank of Nova Scotiaon June 1 received authorization from Chile's competition watchdog, the FNE, to buy Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Chile SA, Reuters reported, citing a statement from the bank.
FNE's approval follows the authorization from Chile's banking and financial industry regulator SBIF early in March. The Canadian bank, which operates Scotiabank Chile, had also received approval for the deal from Canadian regulator OSFI.
This gives Scotiabank the secured regulatory approval to move ahead with the merger of Scotiabank Chile with BBVA Chile, which is expected to be completed in September 2019.
In December 2017, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA accepted Scotiabank's offer to acquire the Spanish lender's 68.19% ownership in the Chilean bank for about US$2.2 billion.
The transaction will double Scotiabank's market share in Chile to approximately 14%.
