CIC Securities, the stockbroking arm of French banking group Crédit Mutuel, is in exclusive talks to buy NCB Stockbrokers from Royal Bank of Scotland. The talks are understood to be at an advanced stage and are expected to be completed by mid- to late-March with the French group paying €25 to €30 million for NCB, the third largest Irish stockbroker, industry sources said.
It is believed that NCB attracted interest from up to four parties, including AIB Capital Markets, which owns Goodbody Stockbrokers. But the field has been narrowed down to CIC, with whom NCB already has a relationship through their membership of the European Securities Network (ESN).
Crédit Mutuel-CIC is the fourth largest banking group in France in terms of its assets and fifth in terms of loans and deposits.
It is the number one player in the French bancassurance sector, the number two in payment systems and represents 12 per cent of total deposits made in the industry and 15 per cent of credit.
The group has 51,000 employees, over 12.5 million clients and 4,700 branches.
