Gentili may head merged French bank -paper

Feb 17, 2009

PARIS, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Steve Gentili could replace Philippe Dupont as the head of the new entity to be formed from the merger of French mutual banks Groupe Caisse d'Epargne and Banque Populaire, La Tribune reported on Monday.

Gentili is head of Banque Populaire's BRED regional bank division and La Tribune said he was well-liked by officials in French President Nicolas Sarkozy's office.

A Caisse d'Epargne spokesman declined to comment on the report while a spokeswoman for Banque Populaire also declined to comment.

Sarkozy's government has put pressure on Caisse d'Epargne and Banque Populaire to speed up their merger. On Saturday, French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde said she wanted the merger to be completed by the end of February.

Groupe Caisse d'Epargne and Banque Populaire each have a stake of 35 percent in loss-making French investment bank Natixis (

CNAT.PA

) and both banks are expected to post annual losses for 2008.

Source:

Reuters

 

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