BNP Paribas said on Thursday that it had entered into exclusive negotiations with AXA with a view to acquiring 100% of its AXA Investment Managers business. The French bank also announced its intention to enter into a long-term partnership with the insurer to manage a large proportion of its assets.

The eurozone's largest bank has also indicated that BNP Paribas Cardif, its insurance business, may delegate the management of its €160 billion insurance and savings assets to this platform, after making the acquisition directly and on its own.

"With an impact of around 25 bp on the BNP Paribas Group's CET1 ratio and at the end of the merger process, the expected return on invested capital from the transaction, from the third year onwards, would be in excess of 18%", says BNP Paribas in a press release, adding that the new entity thus formed would represent 1,500 billion euros in assets under management.

The price agreed for the acquisition and the establishment of the partnership is 5.1 billion euros, says the group, which plans to close the deal by summer 2025.

(Written by Elena Smirnova, edited by Augustin Turpin)