Natixis leaders yesterday launched the series of "road shows" to present the business plan for 2010 of the new wholesale Caisses d'Epargne and Banques Populaires Bank to institutional investors. These meetings will be held for two weeks in Europe and the United States. The issue to the Executive Board of the fourth French bank financing and investment (BFI) is investors to participate in the placement of the approximately 5 billion of securities which will be transferred to institutional and individuals to here to December 6 ("Les Echos" from November 17).
The tour is not coming as a health walk. Because the merger raises a few questions, or even some reservations on the part of investors. They both concern the risks inherent in a merger in the BFI as the dynamism of the two networks of retail bank expected to generate, directly or indirectly, more than a third of the results of the new set. "These are little or less, the same fears that those issued prior to the introduction in stock market of Credit Agricole SA, very gradually lifted", notes an investor.
The new CEO of Natixis, Dominique Ferrero, is therefore attached yesterday to show that the approximation of the teams had "limited risk of execution." They are generally complementary, he said. "The doublonnages are very low." In terms of activities, but of business: only 400 of the 2,300 clients of Ixis, the ex - BFI of the squirrel, are also part of the client 5.900 Natexis, the former Bank of bulk of popular banks, approximately 5 of the customer. The proportion is the same order for the weighted stocks.
Caution of goals
Some analysts also questioned the prudence of the displayed objectives. In particular for synergies, estimated by the two mutual only 522 million euros by 2010. "Is it a lack of ambition or a willingness to keep under the foot", asked one analyst. Dominique Ferrero yesterday responded by indicating that the synergies had been "an exercise of encryption methodical, prudent and conservative".
The course of the merger "We sommesconfiants in our ability to carry out the bulk of the integration by end 2007", he explained, noting that the teams will be "very quickly" grouped on a single site. The construction of legal mergers should start with the approximation of the subsidiaries of asset management in France, likely as early as 2007, before that Ixis is absorbed by Natixis. In computer terms, "the goal is to achieve a system target in the next twelve to eighteen months", said Philippe Dupont, the patron of the Banques Populaires, who chairs the Executive Board of Natixis.
Leaders show the same desire to reassure on sustainability and the effectiveness of the Assembly.
The National Fund of the Caisses d'Epargne and Banques Populaires Federal Bank committed themselves to maintain their participation in the new set to at least 34.5 for ten years with tacit renewal. The relationship with the networks, "all employees of Natixis, but also the Caisses d'Epargne and Banques Populaires will be interested in the results of the Bank of wholesale via the allocation of free shares and the leaders of these three groups will receive a stock," promised Dominique Ferrero.
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