Amundi, the French asset manager owned jointly by Credit Agricole and Societe Generale, is to be floated before the end of the year, depending on market conditions.
Societe Generale may sell its entire 20% share in the firm, which has €954 billion of assets under management and ranks as one of the world’s largest managers.
The purpose of the floatation is to “underpin the continuing development of Amundi and provide liquidity to Societe Generale”, a statement says. Societe Generale’s tier 1 capital would benefit by 20 basis points.
However, Credit Agricole plans to keep a majority stake in Amundi and says Amundi plays a key role in its development strategy.
Amundi will continue to provide savings and investment services to Societe Generale’s retail and insurance networks on a renewable five-year contract.
The plan to float Amundi will be submitted to employee representative bodies.
Amundi was created in 2010. In 2014 Credit Agricole bought a further 5% stake in Amundi from Societe Generale for €337.5 million.
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