KIEV, March 13 - A local court froze shares of Ukraine's fourth-largest bank UkrSotsBank in a move that may delay its acquisition by Banca Intesa of Italy, a newspaper reported Monday.

Italy's Banca Intesa agreed last month to buy 85.42% of the Ukrainian bank for about $1.16 billion in an agreement set to become the largest deal in Ukraine's weak and fragmented banking sector.