Crédit Agricole Advances Strategic Stake in Banco BPM to 19.8% Amid Long-Term Investment Plans

Crédit Agricole Advances Strategic Stake in Banco BPM to 19.8% Amid Long-Term Investment Plans

(IN BRIEF) Crédit Agricole S.A. has announced that it has been authorized by the European Central Bank to exceed a 10% stake in Banco BPM S.p.A., allowing it to hold up to 19.9% of the bank’s share capital under the qualifying holding regime. Over Q4 2024 and Q1 2025, Crédit Agricole built a derivative position equivalent to 9.9% of Banco BPM’s capital and now intends to convert these derivatives into physical shares, which will result in a 19.8% stake, subject to final approval from the Bank of Italy. This strategic move aligns with Crédit Agricole’s long-term investment and partnership strategy with Banco BPM. Although the new derivative position will minimally affect the bank’s CET1 ratio in Q1 2025, a decrease of approximately 20 basis points is expected in Q2 2025 due to the larger stake and regulatory implications.

(PRESS RELEASE) MONTROUGE, 2-Apr-2025 — /EuropaWire/ — Following up on our December 6, 2024 announcement, Crédit Agricole S.A. now informs that on April 1st, the European Central Bank granted authorization for the bank—under the qualifying holding regime—to exceed the 10% ownership threshold in Banco BPM S.p.A. (“Banco BPM”) and hold a stake of up to 19.9% in its share capital. During Q4 2024 and Q1 2025, Crédit Agricole S.A. entered into additional derivative transactions related to Banco BPM shares, achieving a derivative position equivalent to 9.9% of the bank’s share capital. The bank intends to exercise its right to physical delivery of the shares underlying these derivatives, pending final authorization from the Bank of Italy, which will result in holding 19.8% of Banco BPM’s share capital.

As detailed in our previous December 6 release, this stake increase is in line with Crédit Agricole’s long-term strategy as both an investor and partner of Banco BPM. It is important to note that Crédit Agricole S.A. does not plan to launch a public offer for Banco BPM’s capital. Consequently, while the increased derivative position is expected to have a limited impact on the bank’s CET1 ratio in Q1 2025, in Q2 2025, the CET1 ratio is projected to decline by around 20 basis points due to both the increased stake and the impact of crossing the exemption threshold applicable to significant equity investments in the financial sector.

Media Contacts:

INVESTOR RELATIONS:
Cécile Mouton + 33 1 57 72 86 79 cecile.mouton@credit-agricole-sa.fr
Institutional Shareholders + 33 1 43 23 04 31 investor.relations@credit-agricole-sa.fr
Individual Shareholders + 33 8 00 00 07 77 relation@actionnaires.credit-agricole.com

PRESS CONTACTS:
Alexandre Barat + 33 6 19 73 60 28 alexandre.barat@credit-agricole-sa.fr
Olivier Tassain + 33 6 75 90 26 66 olivier.tassain@credit-agricole-sa.fr

SOURCE: CREDIT AGRICOLE