The French based bank Crйdit Lyonnais has sold 85% of its Portuguese subsidiary Crйdit Lyonnais Portugal to the Spanish bank Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA). BBVA is then to bid for the remaining shares in the company at a price of 5 euros per share.
The total cost of the acquisition is reported at FFR164m (25 million). The sale is a response to the EU Commission’s 1998 imposition of restrictions on Crйdit Lyonnais following a high cost financial rescue by the French government.
Crйdit Lyonnais Portugal is mainly involved in leasing and factoring business for comparatively large scale corporate clients.
BBVA already has a 3.75% share holding in Crйdit Lyonnais and is part of the GAP group set up to stabilise it.
Financial Times
