The French lender said the sale was part of a strategy to simplify its business under chief executive Slawomir Krupa.
France’s third largest bank is to sell a professional equipment financing business to its French rival BPCE as part of a wider divestment strategy. The sale is expected to complete by the first quarter of 2025.
The business to be disposed is part of Societe Generale Equipment Finance, which provides equipment leasing and financing solutions to manufacturers, dealers and vendors in sectors ranging from transport to industrials.
In a statement, the bank’s chief executive, Slawomir Krupa, underlined the bank’s ambition to “become a rock-solid and sustainable top tier European bank”.
He added that the sale marked “an important step in the execution of Societe Generale’s strategic roadmap presented in September 2023, targeting a streamlined, more synergetic and efficient business model, while strengthening the group’s capital base”.
The French bank said that the sale would lift its CET1 ratio, which compares a bank’s capital against its assets, by around 25 basis points.
The chief executive of Society Generale Equipment Finance, Odile de Saivre, said the sale marked, “a new chapter firmly orientated towards growth, thanks to the strong alignment of our services”.
