The injection into the new bank further strengthens the seat. Six questions and answers

O The new bank recorded losses of 1,412.6 million euros in 2018 and announced that will request a capital injection of 1,149 million euros from the Resolution Fund, entity owned by the state. Finance Minister Mario Centeno has already been ready to go to Parliament, but in the meantime the legacy of "good" assets is discussed of the Espírito Santo Bank (BES).

In light of the events and political reactions that have occurred since the presentation of the results of the institution led by Antonio Ramalho, which took place on Friday, New prepared a guide with the most important points on this topic.

1. The new bank needs an injection of 1,149 million euros. What is the reason?

Presenting the results, António Ramalho announced that the institution would need an injection of 1,149 million euros strengthen capital ratios. This request is addressed to the Resolution Fund (FdR), an entity which owned by the government and still holds 25% of the new bankthe remaining 75% belonging to the US investment fund Lone Star.

2. The audit is "indispensable"

In response to the new bank's request, the Ministry of Finance stressed the need for damage audit of the institution – even though the 2017 losses have been revised upward.

"Given the significant value of the calls for funds in 2018 and 2019, the Ministry of Finance, in collaboration with the FdR, believes that it is essential to carry out an audit to verify the process of granting the funds. appropriations included in the own funds mechanism, "he said. tutelage, in a statement.

Shortly after, the president of the new bank informed that "all audits are welcome". In addition, the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, subscribed to the request for verification, believing that "The Portuguese have the right to know what happened" since the resolution of this institution.

3. Will the capital injection be validated?

The Ministry of Finance has already it is up to the Resolution Fund (FdR) to "validate the amount requested" by the new bank through the envisaged contractual mechanisms and the supervisory activity developed by the Bank of Portugal (BoP). Will this have an impact on the state accounts? Yes

"Once validations have been made, the FdR should, at an early stage, make its own resources available for payment and then assess the possibility of financing in the market," the statement said, adding that if financing needs persisted, FdR can apply for a state loan with a maximum annual value of 850 million euros.

4. injection? Account certification is required first.

The Resolution Fund is willing to support the new bank with the required amount – using the loan agreed with the state, with an annual limit of 850 million euros – but it does need it first d & # 39; a legal certification of accounts and a procedure of verification, to be carried out by an independent entity. The purpose is to confirm whether the amount to be paid by the FdR has been properly cleared.

5. Can the new bank still ask for more money?

The answer is yes, you can. The bank can still ask for nearly 2,000 million since the recapitalization by the Resolution Fund can reach 3.89 billion euros by 2026, for losses on a set of "toxic" assets and disposals of non-strategic activities – if they jeopardize the institution's capital ratios.

It is recalled that in 2017, the new bank had received a capital injection of 792 million euros. To realize the value demanded by the institution on Friday, the injections of the FdR amount to more than 1,900 million euros.

6. What is the position of the parties

Faced with the news that the state should reinject money into the new bank – and at a time when requests for nurses and teachers were on the agenda – the political parties reacted quickly.

On the one hand, the PS expressed its "full support" at the request of the government to conduct an audit of the institution, on the other hand, the PSD accused Centeno of having "two faces" in the case of the new bank.

The left bloc said that the sale of the institution continued to "pay dearly" to the Portuguese, reiterating that the bank should have remained in the public sphere. The CDS-PP has asked the Minister of Finance to go to Parliament to talk about the new bank "urgently", a request already accepted by Centeno and expected to materialize this week.