CAIXY Caixabank (PK)

MADRID (Dow Jones)-Regional lender Banca Civica SA (BCIV.MC) will cut its staff by 1,500 through early retirements, buyouts and temporary suspensions, the bank said Thursday in a note to the market regulator.

The bank, which is the result of the merger of four Spanish savings banks, said it reached an agreement with unions representing 98% of its employees. Earlier this year Caixabank SA (CABK.MC) agreed to buy Banca Civica for EUR977 million.

The early retirements and the contract buyouts are voluntary, and the temporary layoffs will last from one to two years, Banca Civica said.

-By Jeffrey T. Lewis, Dow Jones Newswires; +34 697 946 156; Jeffrey.lewis@dowjones.com