The Competition Council is analysing the transaction by which Intesa Sanpaolo S.p.A. intends to take over First Bank S.A, the competition authority announced on Friday.Intesa Sanpaolo S.p.A. is mainly active in the financial-banking sector, being the parent company of the Intesa Sanpaolo group. The Intesa Group is present in Romania through its Romanian subsidiary, Banca Comerciala Intesa Sanpaolo Romania S.A.First Bank S.A. is a credit institution active on the financial-banking services market in Romania, operating a network of 40 branches and offering services to both individuals and legal entities.According to the provisions of the Competition Law (no. 21/1996), this operation must be authorised by the Competition Council, which will assess it in order to establish its compatibility with a normal competitive environment and will issue a decision within the time limits provided by law.Any comments and points of view may be submitted to the competition authority within 20 days of the date of this notice.