Portugal's BCP To Decide On Polish Unit Sale By Year-End -Report

Portugal's Banco Comercial Portugues SA (BCP.LB) will likely make a decision on the future of its Polish unit, Bank Millennium SA (MIL.WA), by the end of this year, daily Parkiet reports Wednesday, citing Bank Millennium deputy chief executive Joao Bras Jorge.

Selling Bank Millennium would boost BCP's capital ratios, helping it meet new requirements set out under Portugal's EUR78 billion rescue plan.

In September, the Portuguese bank said it had received three bids for the Polish unit and remained open to further expressions of interest.

Poland's overwhelmingly foreign-owned banking sector is undergoing an ownership reshuffle, as Europe's sovereign debt crisis weighs on banks in peripheral euro-zone countries.

Kicking off the trend, Spain's Banco Santander SA (STD) finalized its acquisition of Poland's Bank Zachodni WBK SA from Allied Irish Banks PLC (ALBK.DB) in February. If other banks in Poland are sold in the coming quarters, the new owners are also likely to come from abroad, analysts said.

Newspaper website: www.parkiet.com

-By Marynia Kruk, Dow Jones Newswires; [phone]; [e-mail]