Europe and the world

1999-2000 - BNP PARIBAS

The history of BNP PARIBAS
recounted in logos.

Merger with Paribas

After the February 1, 1999 announcement of plans for a merger between Paribas and Société Générale, BNP launched two takeover bids on March 9. One was for Société Générale and the other for Paribas, offering fifteen BNP shares for seven Société Générale shares, and eleven BNP shares for eight Paribas shares.

The vision of the 'SBP' merger launched by BNP was summed up by the phrase: "Give France a European-scale banking group with a strong domestic foundation."

The French Conseil des Marchés Financiers gave the green light to the bid. At the end of August 1999 it announced the final results: BNP held 37% of the capital and 32% of the voting rights of Société Générale, and 65% of the capital and 65% of the voting rights of Paribas.

On August 25, André Lévy-Lang resigned as Chairman of Paribas, ceding his position to Michel Pébereau.

The Combined General Shareholders' Meeting of May 23, 2000 confirmed the creation of the new BNP Paribas group. With a net income of over 1.3 billion euros, and 77,000 employees in 83 countries around the world, BNP Paribas ranked among the foremost financial institutions in France and Europe.

The Group derives its strength from the two great banks from which it descends and from which it has adopted its twofold objective: to develop its activities for the greater benefit of its shareholders, customers and employees, and to build the "bank of the future" by reinforcing an already major worldwide presence.

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