Credit Agricole Succeeds in Credito Valtellinese Takeover

By Mauro Orru

Credit Agricole SA said late Friday that its Italian subsidiary Credit Agricole Italia SpA now owns more than 90% of Italian lender Credito Valtellinese SpA, after months of resistance over its takeover plans.

The French bank said its Italian subsidiary had around 91.17% of Credito Valtellinese's share capital, above its 90% threshold target.

The announcement comes days after Credit Agricole sweetened its offer, agreeing to pay a total consideration of 12.50 euros ($15.12) a share cum dividend, valuing Credito Valtellinese at roughly EUR876.9 million.

Credit Agricole launched a bid in November for its Italian subsidiary to take over Credito Valtellinese at EUR10.50 a share, but the offer faced resistance from some Credito Valtellinese shareholders amid concerns the price undervalued the Italian bank.

The French bank said it expected the deal to be accretive to its earnings per share from 2022, with a return on investment above 10% by the third year after the deal, solely including cost and funding synergies. Credit Agricole's common equity tier 1 ratio is projected to lose 20 basis points.

Write to Mauro Orru at [e-mail]; @MauroOrru94

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 26, 2021 01:51 ET (05:51 GMT)

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