UniCredit to discuss Crédit Agricole Agreement at meeting

(Bloomberg) — Top executives from UniCredit SpA and Credit Agricole SA will gather in the coming weeks to discuss the Italian bank’s takeover bid for a domestic rival, as the companies discuss a major distribution deal .

The meeting, which the two sides are trying to arrange, will focus on Italy’s UniCredit’s attempt to acquire Banco BPM SpA, the largest shareholder in France’s Credit Agricole, people familiar with the matter said.

But UniCredit Chief Executive Andrea Orcel and French counterpart Philippe Brassac are also expected to discuss a potential sale arrangement for Credit Agricole’s asset management unit Amundi SA, people familiar with the matter said. Postponement issues. Requested anonymity discussing private information.

Winning Brassac’s support would mark a key step in Orser’s quest to acquire Italy’s third-largest bank, complicating the government’s plans to create a large domestic banking rival. Extending the agreement with Amundi until 2027 could help his case.

The agreement requires UniCredit to sell a minimum level of the French asset manager’s products to its clients, Bloomberg reported. Oser has long viewed the terms of the agreement as unfavorable and has sought to renegotiate them.

UniCredit’s announcement on Monday of a takeover bid for BPM Bank shocked many observers, as Orcel is also considering a takeover of Commerzbank. The initial reaction of Banco BPM’s board was to reject UniCredit’s proposal, an all-stock deal worth about $10 billion, with little premium when it was announced on Monday.

Shares in UniCredit rose 0.58% in Milan on Friday, while Credit Agricole’s shares rose 0.99% in Paris.

Credit Agricole acquired Italian bank Cariparma in 2007 and later expanded its asset management, retail, corporate and investment banking businesses in the country and has a complex network of relationships with both Banco BPM and UniCredit.

The Paris-based company is Banco BPM’s largest investor, with a stake of about 9%, and is the bank’s main partner in consumer credit and non-life insurance joint ventures.

Crédit Agricole’s asset management arm, on the other hand, relies on UniCredit as its main Italian distribution channel. The partnership began in 2016, when Credit Agricole agreed to acquire Vanguard Global Asset Management from UniCredit.

Representatives for both banks declined to comment. Italian newspaper Il Messaggero first reported a possible meeting between the two banks.

—With help from Nicholas Comfort.

(Share price updated in seventh paragraph. A previous version of this story corrected contract expiration year.)

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