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Credit Agricole offers to buy Credit Lyonnais for $20 billion
1. Various exteriors of branch of Credit Agricole with logo
2. Various exteriors of branch of Credit Lyonnais with logo
3. Interior wide of presser
4. SOUNDBITE (French) Rene Carron, Chairman, Credit Agricole
I am now handing over to Jean Peyrelevade, but first let me say to him that I appreciate his friendship, and I know that along with him, Jean Laurent (Credit Agricole Chief Executive) and Dominique Ferrero (Credit Lyonnais Chief Executive), we are going to build a group where trust will be an essential element in our dealings. Thank you.
5. Various cutaways
6. SOUNDBITE (French) Jean Peyrelevade, Chairman, Credit Lyonnais
So tomorrow, the Credit Lyonnais, the French bank of choice for individuals and professionals, will keep its name, and its commercial policy, but will take on a different legal form, probably becoming a subsidiary, but still with its own financing, its own staff, its own offices and its own information system. So, I speak not only to the people working in the group but also to our six million clients, to tell them that tomorrow nothing will change. The clients will still go to the same offices, with the same colours and the same logo, and they will find the same commercial advisers.
7. Cutaway
8. Wide shot press conference
STORYLINE:
French bank Credit Agricole offered to pay roughly 16.5 (b) billion US dollars to take full control of Credit Lyonnais, in a deal that would create one of the largest financial institutions in Europe.
Credit Agricole currently owns 17.4 percent of Credit Lyonnais.
Its offer of 56 euros (57.10 US dollars) per share values Credit Lyonnais, France's fourth largest bank, at 19.92 (b) billion US dollars.
France's stock market regulator announced the deal after the Paris stock exchange temporarily suspended trading in
the two companies' shares.
The announcement brought to an end a four-week struggle between Credit Agricole and rival suitor BNP Paribas for
control of Credit Lyonnais.
Credit Agricole, which has been Credit Lyonnais' largest shareholder for more than three years, held a late morning news conference in Paris to provide more details.
If successful, the merger of the two banks would create a financial institution with a market value of more than 33 (b) billion euros (32.4 billion US dollars) - and a 28 percent share of France's lucrative market in retail banking.
Credit Agricole chairman Rene Carron and chief executive Jean Laurent spent much of the weekend in meetings in a bid to convince the farm bank's powerful regional executives to support the bid.
Last week, BNP Paribas said it wouldn't stand in the way of a friendly merger between its two rivals as long it was
acceptable to Credit Lyonnais shareholders and its 40-thousand workers.
BNP Paribas has built up a 16.2 percent stake in Credit Lyonnais.
Credit Agricole has been in talks about a possible merger with Credit Lyonnais since Credit Lyonnais was privatised in mid-1999, but the negotiations fell apart over who would take top management slots in a merged bank.
Relations have thawed in recent weeks as senior management at Credit Lyonnais was faced with a choice between
negotiating a merger deal with Credit Agricole or joining BNP Paribas.
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