BBVA Seeks To Explore Possible Merger With Sabadell; Stock Down

(RTTNews) - Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (BBVA) and Banco Sabadell are reportedly pursuing merger talks.

BBVA said that it has appointed advisors to approach Banco's board of directors to initiate "negotiations to explore a potential merger transaction between the two entities", Reuters reports.

Spain-based Sabadell also confirmed that it has received a merger proposal from BBVA that its board will analyze.

If the deal goes through, then the combined capitalization of both companies would be almost $78.27 billion, according to FactSet data.

Currently, BBVA's stock is trading at $10.78, down 8.21 percent on the New York Stock Exchange.