BNP Paribas to buy 9% stake in Ageas

(Sharecast News) - French banking giant BNP Paribas announced on Monday that it is buying a 9% stake in Belgian insurer Ageas from Chinese conglomerate Fosun Group for €730m. The deal will make BNP Paribas the largest shareholder in Ageas.

BNP Paribas already benefits from a partnership with Ageas through the latter's AG Insurance (AGI) unit, which provides insurance to the Belgian market. Through BNP Paribas Carfif, the French firm owns 25% in AGI.

"This partnership is materialised by an exclusive distribution agreement for Life and Non-Life insurance between AGI and BNP Paribas Fortis and by a stake of 25% (plus one share) held by the latter in AGI," the company said in a statement.

The acquisition, which doesn't affect the terms of BNP Paribas's partnership with AGI, will have a "marginal impact" on the bank's common equity tier 1 (CET1) capital ratio of just 2 basis points.

The French bank will buy 4.8% initially in the coming days, followed by the rest upon receipt of regulatory approvals.

Ageas shares were up 3% at €43.78 by 1131 Brussels, while BNP Paribas gained 0.7% to €65.79.