MADRID (MarketWatch) -- Spanish savings La Caixa on Friday confirmed talks with much smaller savings bank Caixa Girona about a possible merger. The news comes on the heel of a string of mergers and action surrounding Spain's troubled savings banks, many of which are exposed to the collapse of the construction and housing market here. La Caixa said is a leading European savings bank and the third largest financial group in Spain by business and results, and owner of holding company Criteria Caixacorp. Caixa Gerona mainly operates in the province of Gerona. Additionally, there is speculation in the Spanish press of a merger between two other savings banks here, Bancaja and Caja Madrid. http://www.marketwatch.com/story/spains-la-caixa-in-talks-with-caixa-girona-2010-05-28