Dexia SA, a public sector bank that operates principally in France, Belgium, Italy and the Iberian Peninsula, is weighing options to dispose its wealth management division after a state rescue, reported Bloomberg citing people with knowledge of the matter.
Dexia is under intense pressure to shed businesses after getting a EUR6 billion bailout in 2008. The Brussels-based bank may decide whether to part with the unit or not once it completes negotiations with the European Commission on a reorganization plan. According to the company reports, the Luxembourg-based wealth management unit has EUR15 billion in private-banking assets.
The bank had already sold Financial Security Assurance Holdings, a New York-based bond insurer and is in discussions to sell its minority stake in France-based consumer-banking network Credit du Nord to Societe Generale.
Benoit Dumont, chairman of JPMorgan Chase in Switzerland, said: “There will be many moving pieces in the months to come that may precipitate some to sell. There are several parent companies of foreign banks carrying out comprehensive strategic reviews,” reported the news agency.
Reportedly, banks are evaluating their private banking operations amid a debate over offshore banking, following a crackdown by European and US governments on tax evaders. This is expected to affect the interest of potential buyers owing to the disadvantages of acquiring offshore assets.
