France in Credit squeeze Government forced ever closer to baling out the once-illustrious bank which no domestic buyer wants

THE French government is under pressure to agree to a third restructuring plan for Credit Lyonnais - the state-owned bank which has lost more than Fr20 billion ( pounds 2.5 billion) in four years and for which no buyer seems forthcoming. Observers believe the government, while officially insisting t...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inThe Guardian (London)
Main Author ALEX DUVAL SMITH IN PARIS
Format Newspaper Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Manchester (UK) Guardian News & Media Limited 06.07.1996
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Summary:THE French government is under pressure to agree to a third restructuring plan for Credit Lyonnais - the state-owned bank which has lost more than Fr20 billion ( pounds 2.5 billion) in four years and for which no buyer seems forthcoming. Observers believe the government, while officially insisting that the bank must make further cuts before it steps in, will be obliged to inject more cash by the end of the summer. Last week the finance ministry repeated that the bank must step up rationalisation moves - already including 3,500 job cuts since March 1994 with a further 5,000 promised by 1998 - if it wants government support. "The savings do not show much from the outside and it {the bank's management} must show that it is willing to go further," the ministry said.
ISSN:0261-3077