French Banks: The Hidden Consolidators in European Banking

Morningstar DBRS has released a commentary on the consolidations in the French Banking Sector.

Key highlights include:
-- Unicredit's investment in Commerzbank raises the question as to whether cross-border consolidation is gaining traction in Europe.
-- We believe that there are still too many impediments to large scale consolidation.
-- However, consolidation is happening quietly on a more gradual basis, with French banks being among the most active players.

"French banks have had a significant incentive to expand in terms of products and geographies, given the low profitability of the French banking market." said Sonja Förster, Senior Vice President, European Financial Institution Ratings at Morningstar DBRS. " They have achieved dominant positions in a variety of European financial services through consolidation, a trend that we believe will continue" Sonja Förster added.