Competitor Watch

The French Government’s plans for a new ownership structure for La Poste are progressing, with an agreement between the main parties signed last week.

The French state-owned investment bank, the Caisse des Dépôts (CDC) is taking a majority stake in La Poste, who in turn will become a much larger financial services provider than it is at present.

The deal will value La Poste at €7bn, according to local press articles. Subject to regulatory agreement, the new structure will come into force during the first quarter of 2020.

The merger will allow La Poste to diversify from its declining mail business which lost €596m in revenue as letter volumes declined 7% last year. The enlarged La Poste financial business will be ‘one of the most important public financial groups in the world’, according to the French Government. Its main role will be the provision of financial services in rural areas, where other banks are closing branches.

The financial importance of La Banque Postale to the group was underlined in its 2018 results. La Poste’s banking division reported revenues of €5.6bn in 2018, representing 23% of group revenue, with an operating margin of 14.6%.