0806 GMT - Credit Agricole's return to Belgium could eventually ramp up competition in the country's banking sector, ING says in a research note. The French bank bought a 9.9% stake in Crelan, the Belgian lender it used to own half of, as part of a long-term partnership between the groups which both have roots in agricultural lending. "While it is early days, having a second French bank after BNP Paribas coming back to expand in Belgium could create at some point more sizeable competition, or a strong 5th larger bank," analyst Jason Kalamboussis writes. He notes that this time Credit Agricole has a stronger foothold in Belgium given its recent acquisition of wealth manager Degroof Petercam last year, which it is focused on integrating. (elena.vardon@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 23, 2025 04:06 ET (08:06 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
免责声明：投资有风险，本文并非投资建议，以上内容不应被视为任何金融产品的购买或出售要约、建议或邀请，作者或其他用户的任何相关讨论、评论或帖子也不应被视为此类内容。本文仅供一般参考，不考虑您的个人投资目标、财务状况或需求。TTM对信息的准确性和完整性不承担任何责任或保证，投资者应自行研究并在投资前寻求专业建议。