The French BPCE enters the capital of Banc Sabadell

BarcelonaThe new phase for Banc Sabadell, with Marc Armengol as CEO and with the BBVA takeover bid in memory, is accelerating. The French group BPCE, which brings together entities such as Banque Populaire or Natixis, has entered the capital of the Vallès-based bank with around 7%.

The operation, agreed upon amicably by both parties, will be carried out through market purchases and financial instruments. Both BPCE and Banc Sabadell highlight the French group's intention to become "a stable and long-term shareholder." There is also the intention for it to be represented on the board of directors of Banc Sabadell.

Furthermore, both parties have the will to explore a strategic business cooperation "to make BPCE's capabilities available to Banc Sabadell's clients and generate additional value together".

BPCE, which prevailed last year over CaixaBank in the fight for the Portuguese bank Novo Banco for 6.4 billion euros, is the second-largest banking group in France and the fourth in the Eurozone by capital. One of the objectives is for the French group to eventually become a strategic ally in certain financial activities, just as Zurich is in insurance and Amundi is in funds. In fact, both entities state that they are studying "business opportunities, in particular in corporate and investment banking, equipment leasing, consumer credit, and international client business".

It is expected that the conclusion of these talks will finish at the beginning of next year. It will aim to "identify areas where cooperation can support the development of Banc Sabadell in Spain and, at the same time, strengthen BPCE's European presence".

The French group was born in 2009 as a result of the merger of the networks of cooperative banks (banques populaires) and savings banks (caisses d'epargne). In fact, its acronym corresponds to the name Banques Populaires Caisse d'Épargne.

With Armengol at the helm of management, Sabadell has decided to concentrate the activity of its central services in its three main headquarters, located in Sant Cugat del Vallès, Alicante, and Madrid. It has also reorganized its structure to accelerate digitalization in the retail business, reinforce the commitment to relationship banking segments—companies, private banking, and personal—and promote the use of artificial intelligence on an internal scale. Among the main new features is the creation of the Corporate Transformation and Artificial Intelligence area, integrated into the Strategy Directorate.