LONDON - When acquisitive Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky set his eyes earlier this year on one of Britain's most iconic companies, the
Brand recognition and growth in one of the world's prime financial hubs are key to CEO Jean-Laurent Bonnafe's plans for BNP's investment banking unit, which has expanded globally during his 13-year tenure. At stake is a slice of a resurgent UK deals market. At the end of April there were 38 companies under offer in Britain, the highest number since June 2022, according to Peel Hunt.
Emmanuelle Bury, country head for BNP Paribas in the UK, acknowledged the stiff competition, but said her team would focus on helping UK businesses access international finance to drive new business. BNP had"space to grow our market share", Bury told Reuters in an interview. Market leader Morgan Stanley had clients worth 881 billion pounds as of May 2024, ahead of JP Morgan, with 844 billion, and UBS, with 695 billion, according to the market research provider.Unlike some of its bigger rivals, BNP, which employs 8,000 people in the UK and has 70 billion euros of outstanding loans to British companies, has not sought to buy its way into corporate broking to speed up its growth and enhance its presence.
The investment bank's last consequential deal was the 2022 acquisition of Deutsche Bank's prime brokerage business, which the German lender offloaded as part of a restructuring plan.