BNP in Talks to Buy Axa Asset Managers in $5.5B Deal

BNP Paribas SA is in exclusive talks with Axa SA to buy the insurer’s asset management unit for €5.1 billion ($5.5 billion), a move that will create one of Europe’s largest money managers.

The Paris-based bank will acquire 100% of Axa Investment Managers under the deal, which is expected to be signed by the end of the year after consultation with the employees’ representatives, the lender said in a statement Thursday.

The combined entity will have about €1.5 trillion of assets under management, based on figures for the end of 2023.

The two firms will also enter into a 15-year strategic partnership under which BNP Paribas will provide investment management services to Axa. Bloomberg News reported on talks between the two firms for a potential tie-up of their asset management units last month.

The purchase is the biggest deal yet for BNP Chief Executive Officer Jean-Laurent Bonnafe, who has been returning excess cash to shareholders from the $16.3 billion sale of US lender Bank of the West, which closed last year.

A rare example of an insurer and bank combining their asset managers, the transaction announced Thursday creates a top player in Europe by assets under management, although it will still be dwarfed by the likes of BlackRock Inc.

The combination “would drive our growth over the long-term,” Bonnafe said in the statement.