Very involved in the country, the French bank was exposed to the tune of 18.6 billion euros, including 15.4 billion for Rosbank, a heavyweight in the Russian banking sector in which it was the majority shareholder.

Around 3:00 p.m. GMT on the Paris Stock Exchange, the Societe Generale title took more than 5.85% in a market up 0.13%.

"After several weeks of intensive work", the group announced Monday morning in a press release that it had signed "an agreement" with the Russian investment fund Interros Capital "with a view to [him] selling all of its stake" in Rosbank and its insurance subsidiaries in Russia – a sale that will have a negative impact of 3.1 billion euros in its accounts.

Interros, which is also the previous shareholder of Rosbank, is one of the largest funds in the country.

It holds assets in heavy industry and metallurgy, notably in the Nornickel company and in the pharmaceutical sector (Petrovax).

It was founded by 61-year-old Vladimir Potanin, one of Russia's most powerful and well-known oligarchs.

Close to Vladimir Putin, he was in 2021 the second richest personality in Russia with a fortune estimated at 27 billion dollars, according to Forbes magazine.

President Vladimir Putin, talking with Vladimir Potanin, founder of Nornickel, on November 11, 2015 in Sochi ALEXEI DRUZHININ RIA NOVOSTI/AFP/Archives

“It can be questionable to resell to this type of buyer, but at the same time there were not many people to rush,” commented to AFP an expert in the sector on condition of anonymity, describing “ very complicated conditions of sale" and "limited to candidates on site".

Societe Generale has had discussions with other takeover candidates, a source close to the group told AFP.

In a separate statement, Interros said on Monday that "the terms of the agreement have been approved by the government commission for the control of foreign investments in the Russian Federation".

It indicates that the conclusion of the transaction must take place within a few weeks, after "receipt of all the necessary authorizations from the regulatory bodies".

- "Manageable" impact -

"Interros intends to make maximum efforts to develop Rosbank", and its "most important goal is to preserve the stability of Rosbank, as well as to create new opportunities for its customers and partners", said Vladimir Potanin, quoted in the press release.

In a statement on Telegram, Rosbank said for its part that it was "certain" of the stability of the group thanks to its "experience" and the continuous use of "international expertise".

He also claims to have "great resistance" to economic turbulence thanks to a "thoughtful risk policy" and the holding of a "balanced loan portfolio and a diversified liquidity base".

In Societe Generale's accounts, this sale, if carried out, "should lead" to a negative impact of 3.1 billion euros, i.e. 2 billion in "depreciation of the net book value of the activities sold", and 1 .1 billion of "exceptional element", specifies the French bank.

"With this agreement, the group would withdraw in an effective and orderly manner from Russia while ensuring continuity for its employees and customers," the statement said.

The director general of Société Générale, Frédéric Oudéa, in January 2020 in Paris ERIC PIERMONT AFP / Archives

At the beginning of March, the banking group said it was "fully capable" of resisting a possible loss of control of Rosbank.

Its general manager Frédéric Oudéa had insisted on the independent management of the subsidiary.

This withdrawal announcement was described as "positive" by RBC analysts, who also underlined the "manageable" impact of the operation for the bank.

At the same time, its car leasing subsidiary ALD announced that it will not conclude "new commercial transactions" in Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus, until the current rental contracts come to an end.

Societe Generale wanted to "confirm all of its distribution policy" for its 2021 financial year, namely the dividend of 1.65 euros per share - which will be submitted to the vote of the general meeting of shareholders on May 17 , as well as its announced share buyback program for an amount of approximately 915 million euros.

© 2022 AFP