BRUSSELS, Feb 7 (Reuters) - Fortis (News/Aktienkurs) Bank, now in the hands of the Belgian state, is working this weekend on a 'Plan B' should shareholders of Fortis Holding vote against the state-led carve up of their group, business daily De Tijd said on Saturday. The plan would have to guarantee liquidity for the bank, previously part of Fortis Holding, in the face of a dried-up interbank market. The bank would also have to reassure depositors and savers and avoid a run on the bank. 'Fortis Bank is now convinced of a sense of urgency,' De Tijd said, adding the bank's board will meet on Tuesday and Wednesday. The bank would need emergency credits from the Belgian national bank, with the European Central Bank playing an important role, to secure 30 to 40 billion euros ($38.4-51.2 billion) of liquidity it required each day, De Tijd said. The Belgian state has already offered up to 150 billion euros in state guarantees for Fortis Bank's borrowings. De Tijd said 30-40 billion euros should be sufficient. Shareholders of Fortis Holding will meet in Brussels on Wednesday to vote on separate parts of the break-up of the group in October -- the Netherlands' purchase of Fortis's Dutch activities, Belgium's purchase of the Belgian banking arm, Fortis Bank, and BNP Paribas's acquisition of Belgian assets. Fortis was broken up by the Dutch, Belgian and Luxembourg governments after an 11.2 billion euro cash injection failed to calm investor concerns. Shareholders won a legal battle securing their right to vote on the transactions, prompting Belgium and BNP Paribas to revise the terms. The revised carve-up still involves Belgium taking Fortis Bank and selling a 75 percent stake to BNP, but the latter would only buy 10 percent of the Belgian insurance business, Fortis Holding retaining 90 percent. Some shareholder groups have said they intend to vote against the transactions, believing that they can squeeze more value out and that BNP has paid too low a price. BNP Paribas Chief Executive Baudouin Prot said in an interview in De Tijd on Saturday that his bank could not offer any further concessions. 'The perseverance has its limits and the pragmatism and the will to give concessions too. In each case, we have reached our limits,' he said. 'The idea that 11 billion euros is a ridiculous amount is just not the case. This price is the value of Deutsche Bank today,' Prot said, although BNP's price was also paid mostly in shares which have since dropped in value. (Writing by Philip Blenkinsop) ($1=.7807 Euro) Keywords: FORTIS/ (philip.blenkinsop@thomsonreuters.com; +32 2 287 6838; Reuters messaging: philip.blenkinsop.reuters.com@reuters.net) |
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