(Bloomberg) -- Societe Generale SA has agreed to sell its wealth management units in the UK and Switzerland as Chief Executive Officer Slawomir Krupa makes progress on his pledge to slim down the lender.
Union Bancaire Privée is buying the two units known as SG Kleinwort Hambros and Societe Generale Private Banking Suisse for about €900 million ($984 million), SocGen said in a statement on Monday. The deal involves about €25 billion in assets under management, it said. Bloomberg News previously reported the lender was evaluating the sale of both units.
Krupa unveiled a plan last September to shed less profitable businesses and build up the bank’s capital. He has since sold the equipment finance unit and most of the Moroccan operations as well as other businesses predominantly across Africa. SocGen is also selling its unit in Madagascar to BRED Banque Populaire, it said in another announcement on Monday.
Despite the progress, investors have so far shown little enthusiasm for Krupa’s strategy. The bank’s shares are down more than 20% compared with the day before he presented his plan.
SocGen’s shares dropped for a third straight day on Monday as stock prices plunged globally. The French lender is now down about 18% this year to date, making it the worst performer among the 48 members of the STOXX Europe 600 Banks index.
Assets that are still on the market include SocGen’s custody business SGSS, which has attracted interest from State Street, and the German consumer finance arm Hanseatic Bank, which may be bought by Credit Agricole SA, Bloomberg has reported.
It will continue to have private banking operations in France, Luxembourg and Monaco after the sale of the units in the UK and Switzerland, it said in the other statement. The transactions are expected to add about 10 basis points to SocGen’s CET1 ratio and completion is anticipated for the first quarter of 2025, according to the statement.
For UBP, the deal increases assets under management to more than 175 billion Swiss francs ($206 billion) and boosts its presence in the UK, the Swiss bank said in a separate statement.
--With assistance from Levin Stamm.
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