The proposed takeover must be approved by a majority of Alliance & Leicester shareholders - and voting information was sent to them today.
Shareholders in Alliance & Leicester (A&L) were sent voting information today, regarding the lender's proposed takeover by Spanish financial services group Banco Santander.
The firm, which already owns Britain's largest mortgage provider Abbey, made the £1.3 billion bid earlier last month. If the merger is to go through, however, shareholders must approve the deal by a majority vote at A&L's upcoming general meeting.
When A&L and Abbey's branches are combined, the merged firm would retain 959 outlets in the UK. Under the terms of the deal, each A&L shareholder receives one Santander share for every three shares already held.
Roy Brown, acting chairman of the lender, commented: "We strongly encourage all A&L shareholders to exercise their voting rights. The board believes that the terms of the acquisition are in the best interests of A&L shareholders as a whole and unanimously recommends that A&L shareholders vote in favour of the resolutions to be proposed."
He added: "The proposed acquisition would bring together in the same group two well known UK banks and create a more effective competitor in UK financial services. The A&L board believes that the combination of A&L and Abbey is an excellent fit.
"It represents value for A&L shareholders by providing both greater stability and greater certainty in these uncertain times."
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