Societe Generale agrees sale of private banking subsidiaries

Societe Generale has signed an agreement with Union Bancaire Privée (UBP) to sell its SG Kleinwort Hambros and Societe Generale Private Banking Suisse business units.

In an announcement, SocGen said UBP is to take over all activities for the SG Kleinwort Hambros brand in the UK and Societe Generale Private Banking Suisse, as well as all client portfolios and employees within these entities.

The total assets managed by the businesses covered by these agreements totaled around €25 billion ($26.9 billion) at the end of December 2023. The deal is expected to be completed by the end of the first quarter of 2025.

When completed, these disposals will fetch a total price of around EUR 900 million ($983 million) in cash and equity resulting in a positive impact on the Group's CET1 solvency ratio of 10bps.

The deal is part of Societe Generale's strategic roadmap to streamline the business and create a more efficient organization while strengthening the capital base.

Societe Generale said it is committed to its operations in private banking in France, Luxembourg, and Monaco and will continue to build out operations to support its high-net-worth clients.

These two divestment projects are subject to approval by the relevant financial and regulatory authorities.

As of the end of June 2024, UBP had assets under management of some $178 billion.

“We are extremely pleased to onboard skilled and experienced teams, and are looking forward to providing clients with an even broader range of high-quality investment solutions,”  said Guy de Picciotto, chief executive officer of UBP.

“This acquisition represents a meaningful add-on to UBP’s capabilities in Switzerland and reaffirms our long-term commitment to the UK, which will become a new growth engine for the Group.”