BNP Paribas plans to give up Fortis brand
12 Mar 2009
BNP Paribas will "probably not" keep the Fortis brand as it stands if it succeeds in acquiring the Belgian banking group.
BNP Paribas SA, is France's biggest bank.
Chairman Michel Pebereau clarified that the group would create a new name -- BNP Paribas Fortis -- as it wanted neither to keep the Fortis name as it was nor to scrap it entirely.
He explained that Fortis is a recent name and poses a certain number of problems for shareholders, which it may have disappointed.
The Belgian government announced at the weekend that it had reached a new agreement with BNP Paribas, under which the French bank would take 75 per cent of Fortis Bank in Belgium.
Fortis shareholders are due to vote on this agreement on 8 and 9 April at a shareholders' meeting, after having rejected the previous agreement on 11 February.over the break up of Fortis break-up, with the debacle led to the collapse of the previous Belgian government. (See: New Fortis deal will have 'stable' impact: BNP Paribas)
