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Spanish Banks Lose EU Case on Mortgage Interest Repayments

EU court ruling concerns ‘mortgage floors’ on Spanish loans
Threat of retroactive repayments weighed on banking industry

Bloomberg business news — Spanish Banks May Owe Billions to Mortgage Customers

By

Stephanie Bodoni and

Macarena Munoz Montijano

December 21, 2016, 8:50 AM UTCUpdated onDecember 21, 2016, 12:39 PM UTC

Spanish banks, including Banco Popular Espanol SA and Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA, may have to give back billions of euros to mortgage customers after a final ruling by the European Union’s top court. Bank shares tumbled by as much as 10 percent.

Borrowers who paid too much interest on home loans pre-dating a May 2013 Spanish ruling on so-called mortgage floors are entitled to a refund from their banks, judges at the EU Court of Justice ruled in Luxembourg Wednesday.