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The beat was underpinned by much lower-than-expected "cost of risk" - money set aside for failing loans - of 166 million euros. Analysts had expected 430 million euros. Dubbed a "year of transition" by Krupa's predecessor Frederic Oudea, 2023 is also marked by a severe downturn at SocGen's French retail banking division, fresh from a merger of its two local networks. The second quarter was also affected by negative exceptional items of 240 million euros, which Credit Suisse analysts said were tied to "legacy legal disputes". Retail banking outside France fared better, as did SocGen's car leasing division ALD Automotive (ALDA.PA), whose sales jumped by more than 17% thanks to the acquisition of rival LeasePlan.

Persons: Gonzalo Fuentes, Krupa, Slawomir Krupa, France's, Jefferies, Frederic Oudea, Intesa, LeasePlan, SocGen, Mathieu Rosemain, Augustin Turpin, Ingrid Melander, Mark Potter Organizations: Societe Generale, La Defense, REUTERS, Royal Bank of Canada, European Central Bank, Credit Suisse, Retail, ALD Automotive, Thomson Locations: French, Courbevoie, Paris, France, PARIS, Russia

Atos also said on Tuesday that it plans a 900 million-euro share sale to further shore up its balance sheet. The company said 180 million euros of the shares in the capital raise would be reserved for EPEI, giving it a 7.5% stake in Eviden. The sale of the remaining 720 million euros of new shares will be underwritten by BNP Paribas and JP Morgan, the company said. The expected sale would bring in 100 million euros in cash and cut 1.9 billion euros worth of liabilities from the tech company's balance sheet, Atos said. The sale gives an enterprise value of 2 billion euros to the sold division, which generated 4.5 billion euros of core revenue last year and employs 52,000 people.

Persons: Daniel Kretinsky, Atos, JP Morgan, Nathalie Senechault, Paul Saleh, Mathieu Rosemain, Sudip Kar, Edmund Klamann, Sharon Singleton Organizations: PARIS, Casino, Tech Foundations, Equity Investment, BNP, Thomson Locations: Czech, Europe, France, Eviden

The talks, announced with Kretinsky's EP Equity Investment (EPEI) vehicle, come on top of a 900 million-euro share-sale plan, aimed at further shoring up Atos' balance sheet, the company said. The expected sale would bring in 100 million euros in cash and cut 1.9 billion euros worth of liabilities from the tech company's balance sheet, Atos said. It gives an enterprise value of 2 billion euros to the sold division, named Tech Foundations. Tech Foundations, whose activities generated 4.5 billion euros of revenue last year, offers infrastructure management services. Following the sale of the tech unit, Atos will still rename as Eviden.

Persons: Daniel Kretinsky, Atos, Nathalie Senechault, Paul Saleh, Mathieu Rosemain, Sudip Kar, Edmund Klamann, Sharon Singleton Organizations: PARIS, Kretinsky's, Equity Investment, Tech Foundations, Tech, Casino, Thomson Locations: Czech, Paris, French, France

The European Banking Authority (EBA) said the test covered 70 banks, 20 more than in 2021 with 57 from the euro zone whose test was overseen by the European Central Bank, representing about 75% of banking assets in the EU. Of the 14 German banks tested, 8 were below the EU average for CET1 and leverage ratio, while 6 were above. The European Banking Federation, an industry body, said the results reaffirmed the resilience of the EU banking sector. The watchdog said that in year three of the test, 37 banks fell below capital levels that trigger curbs on payouts. Deutsche Kreditwirtschaft, an umbrella association representing the German financial industry, said the results proved that German banks were "resilient" but it criticized the ECB's approach.

Persons: Goldman, Banks, markups, Tom Sims, John O'Donnell, Mathieu Rosemain, Mark Potter Organizations: European Union, European Banking Authority, European Central Bank, EU, JPMorgan, Volkswagen Bank, La Banque Postale, European Banking Federation, Deutsche, ECB, Thomson Locations: FRANKFURT, Europe, United States, France, Frankfurt, Paris

PARIS, July 28 (Reuters) - Amundi (AMUN.PA), Europe's biggest fund manager, posted better-than-expected quarterly net inflows on Friday as investors' appetite for risk-averse products underpinned a 1.9% yearly growth in assets under management. This beat the analyst consensus compiled by the company, which predicted a decrease of 1.1 billion euros in three-month period ending in June. Baudson also said that the reopening of China's economy started to have a positive effect on net inflows stemming from its joint venture with Bank of China, leading to "very slightly positive" net inflows in the second quarter. Amundi's second-quarter earnings also beat expectations, with adjusted net income totaling 320 million euros, up 19% from a year earlier. ($1 = 0.9098 euros)Reporting by Mathieu Rosemain; Editing by Conor HumphriesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Valerie Baudson, Baudson, Amundi's, Mathieu Rosemain, Conor Humphries Organizations: Europe's, Bank of, Thomson Locations: Bank of China

The French lender's second-quarter net income fell 4.9% on a reported basis to 2.81 billion euros ($3.12 billion), beating the 2.49 billion euro analyst consensus compiled by the company. Group revenue fell 1.5% to 11.4 billion euros, also above expectations, while the cost of risk - money put aside for failing loans - was lower than expected at 689 million euros. BNP's bottom line also suffered from a set of exceptional items that totalled 723 million euros after tax. These included an 125 million euro provision for unspecified litigation. The group's 5 billion euro share buyback programme will proceed as planned, it confirmed, adding that the second tranche of 2.5 billion euros had been approved and will be launched from early August.

Persons: Italy's, Mathieu Rosemain, Christopher Cushing, Jason Neely, David Goodman Organizations: BNP, Royal Bank of Canada, Bank of, European Central Bank, Spain's Santander, Thomson Locations: PARIS, Bank, France

☆ BNP Paribas facing potential fine as it resolves U.S. messaging probe
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PARIS, July 27 (Reuters) - BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA) is set to resolve a U.S. probe into employees' use of unapproved messaging platforms, its mid-year earnings report showed on Thursday, which could see the French bank face a fine. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) later also examined the issue, bank disclosures showed. BNP set aside 125 million euros ($139 million) for an unspecified litigation in its earning report. "The proposed resolutions are subject to finalisation by the CFTC and SEC," BNP, the euro zone's biggest bank, added. French rival Societe Generale (SOGN.PA) said earlier this year that it, too, had been drawn into the probe.

Persons: Mathieu Rosemain, Jason Neely Organizations: BNP, Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, Futures Trading Commission, CFTC, Societe Generale, Britain's HSBC, Thomson Locations: U.S, French

PARIS, July 25 (Reuters) - France's Thales (TCFP.PA) said on Tuesday it would buy U.S. cybersecurity company Imperva in a deal worth $3.6 billion as it steps up expansion away from its historic defence business to the war against hacking. "This really changes our scale in civil cybersecurity," Thales Chief Executive Patrice Caine told analysts, adding that the deal represented a rare opportunity to become a premium player on a global scale in cybersecurity. Thales said the price of the deal implied an enterprise value of 17 times 2024 operating earnings. Thales said buying Imperva would generate around $110 million of pretax synergies, including $50 million of cost savings and $60 million linked to revenue opportunities. Thales said the deal would close in 2024 subject to approvals, and did not anticipate significant hurdles.

Persons: Thoma, Patrice Caine, Thales, Jefferies, Chloe Lemarie, Caine, Morgan Stanley, Sudip Kar, Muralikumar Anantharaman, Kim Coghill, Bernadette Baum Organizations: Thales, Thoma Bravo, PwC, Cobham Aerospace Communications, Thomson Locations: cybersecurity, France, Paris, Europe

☆ French antitrust watchdog issues statement of objection over Apple app tracking
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PARIS, July 25 (Reuters) - France's antitrust watchdog on Tuesday said it had issued a statement of objection against Apple (AAPL.O), citing concerns the U.S. technology company could have used "discriminatory and non-transparent conditions" for using user data for advertising purposes on iPhones. The statement triggers a proper antitrust procedure during which the company will be able to express its point of view, the watchdog said. The mechanism "gives users more control by requiring all apps to ask permission before tracking them," Apple said in an e-mailed statement, adding that it will "continue to engage constructively" with the French antitrust regulator. The four associations - IAB France, MMAF, SRI and UDECAM - said the changes brought by Apple did not meet European Union privacy rules, which Apple denies. Reporting by Tassilo Hummel and Mathieu Rosemain; Editing by Susan Fenton and Mark PorterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Apple, Tassilo Hummel, Mathieu Rosemain, Susan Fenton, Mark Porter Organizations: Apple, ., IAB, SRI, Thomson Locations: IAB France, MMAF

It leaves Kretinsky, who submitted a revised offer over the weekend proposing the equity injection, as the only bidder. The cash injection plan would lead to a 4.7 billion-euro reduction in overall debt, Casino said. Casino is saddled with net debt of 6.4 billion euros and is teetering on the brink of default. The board meeting followed a separate meeting between Casino's creditors and CIRI - France's finance ministry body that helps distressed companies and their creditors draw up restructuring plans. Kretinsky and Ladreit de Lacharriere would control the investment vehicle behind the 1.2 billion-euro equity injection, a source said.

Persons: Daniel Kretinsky, Kretinsky's, Xavier Niel, Jean, Charles Naouri, Kretinsky, Niel, Matthieu Pigasse, Moez, Alexandre Zouari, Casino, Marc Ladreit de, Ladreit, Mathieu Rosemain, Mike Harrison, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Casino, 3F, Attestor, French, Monde, Fnac, Metro, Forbes, Thomson Locations: Czech, PARIS, French, Paris, Casino, Britain, France, Germany

"We're keeping a particularly close eye on the current tensions between the U.S. and China," said Florent Menegaux, chief executive of French tyremaker Michelin. "When we see the impact that the IRA will have (on European companies), I think we haven't talked enough about it at this conference," a senior banker said. "There is a big risk that European companies will shift their investments (from Europe to the United States)." Some say the main concern is the time taken by European Union authorities to respond. "I understand the frustration, but when you look at the details of the extent to which the United States is subsidising its domestic industry, it is not greater than what the Europeans do themselves," Boushey said.

Persons: Jean, Dominique Senard, Ludovic Marin, Florent Menegaux, Menegaux, Christel Bories, Bories, Veronika Grimm, Heather Boushey, Boushey, Mathieu Rosemain, David Holmes Organizations: Renault SA, U.S, French, Michelin, Renault, European Union, Reuters, White House Council, Economic Advisers, Thomson Locations: Japan, Douai, France, PROVENCE, United States, China, Europe, Indonesia, America

"There's no real consensus at the moment about the increase in interest rates among economic actors," Jeremie Delecourt, chief operating officer at French private equity fund Ardian, told Reuters. In the euro zone, the peak is near after a combined 4 percentage points rise in the past year, ECB policymaker and French central bank governor Francois Villeroy de Galhau said on a panel at the conference. But he also said that rates would be left high for as long as necessary to ensure that inflation is headed back to the European Central Bank's 2% target by 2025. The ECB raised interest rates to their highest level in 22 years last month and promised another hike this month, with possibly another in September. "I see quite a bit of optimism in the short term, but I see a lot of downside risks if there is a policy mistake, especially from the central banks," she added.

Persons: Jeremie Delecourt, Francois Villeroy de Galhau, Jean, Louis Girodolle, Lazard, Mario Draghi's, Somersan Coqui, Daniel Barneix, Barneix, Veronika Grimm, Leigh Thomas, Alexander Smith Organizations: Reuters, ECB policymaker, Central, ECB, Atlantic, Allianz Trade, Thomson Locations: PROVENCE, France, United States, Europe, Aix, Provence

REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/File PhotoSummaryCompanies Talks involve potential prepayment accord with carmakersMiner in talks with state-owned companies in Chile over lithiumAIX-EN-PROVENCE, France, July 9 (Reuters) - French mining group Eramet (ERMT.PA) is in talks with several European carmakers over commercial agreements that would help the company finance its lithium production project in Argentina, Chief Executive Officer Christel Bories said. "We're positioning ourselves (in Chile), we have discussions with state-owned companies," Bories said, with the aim to gain potential lithium concessions "in the coming months." Demand for electric vehicles (EVs) has increased as climate-conscious consumers snap up cars with electric powertrains, amid soaring fuel prices. Bories confirmed commodities group Glencore (GLEN.L) was among parties to have expressed interest in helping finance Eramet's lithium production in Argentina. She declined to elaborate further or give the names of the European carmakers involved in the talks.

Persons: Benoit Tessier, carmakers Miner, Christel Bories, Bories, We're, Mathieu Rosemain, Elaine Hardcastle Organizations: REUTERS, carmakers, Manufacturers, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Paris, France, Chile, PROVENCE, Argentina, United States, China, Aix, Provence, South America

AIX-EN-PROVENCE, France, July 8 (Reuters) - A "Chinese storm" is looming over Europe's growing electric vehicle (EV) sector, Renault Chairman Jean-Dominique Senard told Reuters on Saturday, as Asia's superpower dominates key raw materials to make batteries for zero emission cars. "When I talk about a Chinese storm, I'm talking about the strong pressure today related to Chinese (electric) vehicle imports into Europe," Senard said. China's export restrictions are escalating a technology war with the United States, potentially causing more disruption to global supply chains. The development of alternative fuels - such as synthetic e-fuels and hydrogen - would be crucial in the event of a sudden shortage of batteries due to a dearth of raw materials, Senard said. Reporting by Mathieu Rosemain; Additional reporting by Gilles Guillaume Editing by Mark PotterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Jean, Dominique Senard, Senard, Mathieu Rosemain, Gilles Guillaume, Mark Potter Organizations: Renault, Reuters, Thomson Locations: PROVENCE, France, China, Europe, United States

☆ Credit Agricole's CACEIS registers in France as crypto custody services provider
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PARIS, June 22 (Reuters) - CACEIS, the asset servicing business owned by Credit Agricole (CAGR.PA) and Santander (SAN.MC), has registered with France's markets regulator AMF to provide custody services for digital assets, such as cryptocurrencies. The company registered as a digital asset service provider (DASP) on June 20, according AMF's website, adding a major traditional financial services group to the growing number of crypto companies registered by the French watchdog. France has been supportive of the nascent industry and was the first major European country to grant registration to the world's biggest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance. CACEIS had 4.1 trillion euros ($4.51 trillion) in assets under custody at end of last year, according to its website. Credit Agricole SA is its majority owner with a 69.5% stake, while Santander holds a 30.5% of the group.

Persons: Mathieu Rosemain, Jane Merriman Organizations: Credit Agricole, Santander, AMF, Binance, Societe Generale, AXA, CACEIS, Credit Agricole SA, Thomson Locations: France

☆ Musk: Tesla's value is based primarily on vehicle autonomy
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Companies Tesla Inc FollowPARIS, June 16 (Reuters) - Tesla's (TSLA.O) market value is essentially based on vehicle 'autonomy', said Tesla CEO Elon Musk on Friday, and Musk added that he "did not expect that Tesla would be at this level" regarding the company's stock market value. "The value of the company is primarily on the basis of autonomy," Musk told the Paris VivaTech event. "That's really, I think, the main driver of our value." Tesla says that what it calls “Full Self-Driving” software does not make its vehicle autonomous and requires driver supervision. "Although I've said this before, I think we will solve autonomy soon," the billionaire said at the event.

Persons: Elon Musk, Musk, Tesla, I've, Sudip Kar, Gupta, Mathieu Rosemain, Gilles Guillaume, Hyunjoo Jin, Alistair Bell Organizations: Tesla, Paris, Thomson

☆ Elon Musk repeats call for artificial intelligence regulation
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PARIS, June 16 (Reuters) - Billionaire Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla (TSLA.O) and owner of Twitter, reaffirmed on Friday his view that there should be a 'pause' on the development of artificial intelligence (AI) and that the AI sector needed regulation. "There is a real danger for digital superintelligence having negative consequences," said Musk, at the Paris VivaTech event. "I am in favour of AI regulation," he added. Reporting by Silvia Aloisi, Gilles Guillaume, Mathieu Rosemain, Sudip Kar-Gupta, Michel Rose; Editing by Louise HeavensOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Billionaire Elon Musk, Silvia Aloisi, Gilles Guillaume, Mathieu Rosemain, Sudip Kar, Gupta, Michel Rose, Louise Heavens Organizations: Billionaire, Tesla, Twitter, Paris, Thomson

☆ EU regulators checking if Vivendi jumped gun in Lagardere acquisition
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BRUSSELS, June 15 (Reuters) - EU antitrust regulators are checking whether French media conglomerate Vivendi (VIV.PA) closed its acquisition of French publisher Lagardere (LAGA.PA) before securing regulatory approval, the European Commission said on Thursday. Such so-called gun jumping can result in fines of up to 10% of a company's group aggregate turnover. The EU executive said it was alerted by media reports but has not opened a formal investigation yet. "The Commission was made aware of allegations of gun jumping, which have been reported in the press. The Commission can confirm that it is looking into the matter," the EU executive said in an email.

Persons: Lagardere, Foo Yun Chee, Mathieu Rosemain, Jan Harvey Organizations: Vivendi, European Commission, EU, Thomson Locations: BRUSSELS, EU, Paris

MILAN, June 14 (Reuters) - Merger and acquisition speculation has lifted shares in MFE (MFEB.MI), the late Silvio Berlusconi's TV business, following his death, but a number of obstacles stand in the way of any rapid deal. With a 19.8% MFE stake, Vivendi (VIV.PA) is widely seen as the natural buyer for MFE. This week's rally has lifted the market value of the whole of MFE to 1.8 billion euros. Any accord between Vivendi and Fininvest would require overcoming the deep distrust between the two groups after years of courtroom battles sparked by a failed 2016 TV deal. Like Fininvest, Vivendi faces a loss on any potential sale of its MFE stake given the gap between book and market prices.

Persons: Silvio Berlusconi's, Vincent Bollore, Urbano, Pier Silvio Berlusconi, Fininvest, MFE, Emilio Parodi, Valentina Za, Barbara Lewis Organizations: MILAN, Vivendi, Reuters, della Sera, U.S, Warner Bros ., VIVENDI, FININVEST, Fininvest, MFE, Thomson Locations: MFE, Urbano Cairo, Germany's ProSiebenSat, Italy, Spain, Rome, Netherlands

The group will study this expression of interest and keep the market informed," Casino said in a statement on Wednesday. And the holding company through which Naouri controls Casino is also heavily indebted. Niel, Pigasse and Zouari said they would invest 200 million to 300 million euros themselves, with the rest coming from unspecified partners, including Casino creditors. The trio's proposal comes after Kretinsky, Casino's second-largest shareholder, offered in April to take control of the group through a 1.1 billion euro capital increase. A Casino spokesperson declined to comment beyond its statement on Wednesday or on behalf of Naouri.

Persons: Jean, Charles Naouri, Xavier Niel, Daniel Kretinsky, Casino, Kretinsky, Niel, Matthieu Pigasse, Moez, Alexandre Zouari, Clement Genelot, Garnier, Pigasse, Zouari, Casino's, Mathieu Rosemain, Chiara Elisei, Laura Lenkiewicz, Sudip Kar, Silvia Aloisi, Mark Potter, Alexander Smith Organizations: Casino, Monoprix, BNP, Credit Agricole, Carrefour, Reuters, France's, Naouri, Thomson Locations: PARIS, Czech, Natixis, Casino

PARIS, June 7 (Reuters) - Atos (ATOS.PA), the struggling French IT consulting firm planning to split into two listed entities, said it expected sales at loss-making unit Tech Foundations to hit bottom in 2024. That will see it separate Tech Foundations from Eviden, which groups Atos' most coveted assets such as cybersecurity division BDS and supercomputers. Co-CEO Nourdine Bihmane said on a call with reporters that the split-up plan was "on the verge to be completed in the main countries". He also said plans to sell 700 million euros of assets, deemed crucial to finance the company's turnaround plan, were "almost completed". About 20% of that 1.2 billion-euro turnaround plan, which entails laying off about 7,500 people, has been achieved, he said.

Persons: Atos, Nourdine Bihmane, Mathieu Rosemain, Sudip Kar, Gupta, Mark Potter Organizations: Tech, Eviden, Thomson

SummarySummary Companies Q1 investment bank sales up 20%Trading activity outperforms peersConfirms 2025 targetsPARIS, May 10 (Reuters) - Credit Agricole SA (CAGR.PA), France's second-biggest listed bank, posted better-than-expected earnings on Wednesday, as market volatility boosted trading revenue. This helped drive Credit Agricole's quarterly sales to 6.12 billion euros ($6.74 billion), up 9.6% from a year earlier, while net income more than doubled to about 1.23 billion euros. Both figures beat market expectations of 5.9 billion euros and 816 million euros, respectively, according to an analyst consensus compiled by the company. Deposit levels were stable in the quarter from a year earlier for the group, Credit Agricole said. The cost of risk -- money set aside for failing loans -- fell to 374 million euros, as concerns linked to the war in Ukraine subsided.

Royal Bank of Canada analysts said the results pointed to a strong performance at BNP's trading arm and good cost control. In securities trading, revenue edged down 1.8% but still performed better than some peers including Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE), which saw fixed-income trading decline by 17% in the first quarter. At U.S. bank Goldman Sachs, first-quarter sales from fixed income, currency and commodities (FICC) trading, usually a bright spot, plunged 17% to $3.93 billion, while equity trading revenue sank 7% to $3.02 billion. The first quarter net income, group share amounted to 4.44 billion euros, in line with expectations, and up from 1.84 billion a year earlier. The first tranche of 2.5 billion euros was approved in March, a sign analysts deemed reassuring as it took place shortly after the collapse of Credit Suisse.

☆ Atos' cybersecurity unit drives sales ahead of split
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Mathieu Rosemain | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Home to assets deemed strategic by the French government, Atos is striving to regain investor confidence after several setbacks, heavy losses and sharp stock swings precipitated by governance instability. Eviden groups Atos' most coveted assets such as cybersecurity division BDS and supercomputers, fuelling speculation about interest from other players in the cybersecurity field, such as Thales (TCFP.PA). First-quarter revenue was up 2.8% from a year earlier to 2.81 billion euros ($3.11 billion), beating the analyst consensus provided by the company. Atos said its much-expected shareholder meeting would take place on June 28, amid strong criticism from some investors of board chairman Bertrand Meunier. ($1 = 0.9047 euros)Reporting by Mathieu Rosemain; Editing by Sudip Kar-GuptaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ French police working with EU on luxury antitrust probe
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, April 21 (Reuters) - French police are involved in an ongoing investigation relating to a probe by EU antitrust regulators into possible violations by European luxury companies, a police spokesperson said on Friday. The European Commission said on Tuesday that antitrust regulators had raided companies in the fashion sector in multiple EU countries, but did not name the companies involved or specify the potential breaches it was investigating. Reuters reported on Wednesday that the Milan headquarters of Gucci, owned by Kering (PRTP.PA), had been inspected by Italian tax police and EU antitrust officials as part of the probe. Kering confirmed the inspection and said it was fully cooperating with the European Commission. Asked by Reuters if French companies had also been targeted by the EU inspections, which would be conducted in cooperation with local authorities, a police spokesperson said: "We're in an ongoing investigation", declining to elaborate.

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