Hellenic Business

Crédit Agricole SA will likely have to pour a further €600 million ($779 million) to €700 million into its flailing Greek unit before it will be able sell the subsidiary, according to people from both the private and public sectors with knowledge of the sales process.

The French lender’s once grand ambitions in southern Europe have been badly bruised by the sovereign-debt crisis. The acquisition of Emporiki Bank of Greece in 2006 saddled the bank with billions of euros in losses as bad loans rose and fears over an eventual Greek exit from the 17-nation currency bloc shattered consumer confidence. Billions more had to be written off as a result of Greece’s €200 billion debt restructuring earlier this year.

Since then, Crédit Agricole has been looking for a way to exit Greece and is now considering offers for Emporiki from three Greek banks: Eurobank Ergasias SA, National Bank of Greece SA, and Alpha Bank ΑΕ. A decision is expected later this week, possibly as soon as after a Crédit Agricole board meeting on Wednesday.

The Wall Street Journal