Crédit Agricole gets ECB clearance to raise Banco BPM stake above 20%
Crédit Agricole has received authorisation from the European Central Bank to lift its shareholding in Banco BPM beyond 20%.
In the third quarter of 2025, Crédit Agricole engaged in derivative transactions tied to Banco BPM shares, enabling the group to raise its stake by an additional 0.3%.
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Plans are underway for these derivatives to be settled physically, which will bring Crédit Agricole’s total holding in Banco BPM to 20.1%.
The institution has reiterated its stance that it “does not intend to acquire or exercise control on Banco BPM and will maintain its stake below the mandatory tender offer threshold.”
As a result, from the fourth quarter of 2025 onwards, Crédit Agricole will start recognising its investment in Banco BPM under the influence accounting method, reflecting its role as a long-term investor and collaborator with the Italian bank.
This change in accounting treatment means that Crédit Agricole’s results will no longer be directly affected by fluctuations in Banco BPM’s share price.
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By GlobalDataThe initial accounting for this consolidation is expected to result in a negative impact of approximately €600m ($700.08m), which will be reported in the “share of net income of equity-accounted entities” line for the fourth quarter of 2025.
Despite this, the net income effect on annual earnings from holding Banco BPM shares including fair value adjustments and dividends is anticipated to be positive by roughly €200m in 2025.
The consolidation is projected to boost Crédit Agricole’s CET1 ratio by about five basis points.
In April 2025, the European Central Bank (ECB) authorised Crédit Agricole to increase its stake in Italian bank Banco BPM to up to 19.9% under the qualifying holding regime.
Separately, in November 2025, UniCredit filed an appeal with Italy’s highest administrative court, the Consiglio di Stato, contesting terms set by authorities concerning its unsuccessful attempt to take over Banco BPM.
This move follows an earlier legal challenge in a lower court that yielded only partial success for UniCredit.
Central to the dispute is a government requirement that UniCredit cease its Russian operations, a condition upheld by the lower court and now being challenged at a higher judicial level.
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