Regulator raises no objection to Nationwide takeover of Virgin Money
A proposed merger between Nationwide and Virgin Money has been given the green light by the competition watchdog.
The UK’s biggest building society revealed the £2.9bn deal with its rival in March. If it goes ahead, it will create the second largest provider of mortgages and savings in the UK.
The planned acquisition was approved by Virgin Money shareholders at shareholder meetings held on 22 May 2024.
At the end of May, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) confirmed that it would examine whether the takeover would result in a substantial lessening of competition in the UK banking sector.
The CMA has now unconditionally cleared the acquisition following its phase one investigation, ruling that it will not harm competition. Virgin Money and Nationwide have both welcomed the decision today – 19 July.
The takeover deal will form a combined group with 700 branches – second only to Lloyds Banking Group. And the combined assets of the groups will total around £366.3bn.
Virgin Money is the UK’s sixth largest retail bank with about 6.6 million customers. Nationwide has almost 18 million customers.
