Credit Agricole CFO says bank is weighing scenarios on Banco BPM stake
The comment follows months of Credit Agricole building its position in the Italian lender toward 29.3% of its capital
Published
Credit Agricole's chief financial officer told CNBC that the bank is evaluating scenarios regarding Banco BPM. The comment adds no new detail to a position the French bank has been building for months.
Credit Agricole notified Italian authorities and Banco BPM earlier this year that it had crossed the 25% threshold in the Italian lender, and now holds 29.3% of its share capital, built through market purchases and a derivative instrument, according to a Credit Agricole press release. The bank has said the additional stake purchase was expected to cut roughly 35 basis points from its CET1 capital ratio as of the end of the second quarter, according to a Euronext filing.
Credit Agricole's management has already set out its preferred path for the stake. On an August earnings call, chief financial officer Clotilde Delbos said the bank sees Italy as a strategic priority and favours combining Banco BPM with its Italian unit, Credit Agricole Italia, arguing that such a deal would create value and strengthen its market position, according to a transcript published by Investing.com. In July, Credit Agricole's chief executive said the bank had received no proposal on a merger between Monte dei Paschi di Siena and Banco BPM, and said nothing could be done involving Banco BPM without Credit Agricole given the size of its stake, according to Il Sole 24 Ore.
Against that background, a CFO saying the bank is "evaluating scenarios" confirms a trajectory that was already under way rather than announcing a new one. Credit Agricole has not disclosed a full takeover bid for Banco BPM, and the stake increase has already been flagged to Rome. For investors, the comment reads as consistent with a slow consolidation path already priced into both stocks rather than as a fresh catalyst.