Societe Generale (SG) has come out of its failed merger with Paribas as a stronger group after being forced to explore new avenues.
SG Investment Banking chief executive Xavier Debonneuil, speaking from the firm's Hong Kong headquarters yesterday, said the company was well-positioned to compete in a tougher operating environment despite the merger breakdown.
'If we look back, of course, we are disappointed to not have concluded the deal with Paribas,' Paris-based Mr Debonneuil said.
'But we have come out of the battle a lot stronger.' In the middle of last year, Banque Nationale de Paris won control of Paribas in a double takeover bid, shutting SG out of its merger plans with Paribas.
At the time, SG chairman Daniel Bouton said the group would seek European partnerships following the breakdown of the deal.
Now on its own, the question begs as to how SG is going to compete on a global scale with the increasingly powerful United States houses dominating the larger deals.