Dutch government backs Fortis sale to BNP Paribas ahead of vote

24 April 2009

Fortis Bank will remain in the hands of Belgium government if its shareholders reject the sale of a 75-per cent stake to French banking major BNP Paribas next week, Belgian prime minister Herman Van Rompuy said yesterday.

"The government continues to fully back the agreement with France's BNP Paribas. It does not consider an alternative. If shareholders reject that plan, Fortis Bank will remain 100 per cent in the hands of the authorities for the coming years,'' he told the parliament.

Fortis Holding shareholders will vote on 28 April to decide the fate of the troubled bank.

Fortis, once the largest bank in Belgium and the Netherlands, failed last year, struck by the credit crisis as well as weighed by the acquisition of banking giant ABN Amro 's Dutch retail banking arm in 2007 for 24 billion euro.

''Under no circumstances will there be new negotiations. Not with BNP Paribas, not with Fortis Holding," he said.

The Netherlands government in October 2008, acquired Fortis Bank Nederland (Holding) N V, including the participation in RFS Holdings B V that represents the acquired activities of ABN AMRO, Fortis Verzekeringen Nederland N V, and Fortis Corporate Insurance N V. (See: Netherlands government acquires Fortis' Dutch unit for €16.8 billion).