Looks like a small castle

17 January 2003

The pending sale of Suez s 10% stake in the Benelux bancassurer has thrown Fortis independence into doubt. One might expect this to put a rocket under Fortis share price. But not in this case even if a merger does happen one day.

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Fortis' future has been thrown into doubt by the pending sale of a 10% stake in the Benelux bancassurer by Suez, the French utility.

Fortis senior managers are worried that the sale, which is due to take place before the end of 2004, will make the group vulnerable to a hostile bidder.

In the past, Fortis chief executive has made no secret of his ambition to play an active role in the consolidation of the European financial sector. Fortis' second biggest shareholder, the charitable foundation VSB Fonds, told Reuters on Friday it had no plans to sell its 5.7% stake.

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