Marfin Popular Bank led blue-chip gainers and rose 1.5 per cent to EUR10.64 on the continuing positive sentiment surrounding the bank after it announced last week it had agreed to acquire 43 per cent of Lombard Bank of Malta.

At the same time, in Malta, Lombard Bank Malta took the podium on Friday as the share price gained a whopping 8c9 (Eur0.21) to finish at Lm5.09 (Eur11.86) across 1,380 shares.

On Thursday Lombard Bank announced that Marfin Popular Bank Public Company Ltd had reached agreement for the acquisition of approximately 43 per cent of the share capital of Lombard Bank Malta from the key shareholders BSI SA, Lugano, and other international investors for the sum of EUR48,3 million.

The agreement is subject to the relevant approvals being obtained from the supervisory authorities in Cyprus and Malta.