It is not always easy to be a banker. Nor to brag about his profession at dinner parties. Already, in 1321, Dante had given them a special place in his Hell. In Catholic countries, the principle, although admitted by the Church, of loans with interest has never passed. Paradox: France has become a very large banking country and its institutions are among the most important and solid in Europe. But it is still rare that this profession is spontaneously mentioned when people are asked about those who are most useful to society.
The mercato which agitates the sector illustrates both the economic role of banks and the aspirations of those who work there. This is the case of Laurent Mignon, the current boss of one of the major establishments of the place, the BPCE, resulting from the merger, in 2009, of the Banques Populaires and the Caisses d’Epargne. After brilliantly turning around the investment subsidiary Natixis, he became president in 2018 and gave full satisfaction to his shareholders.
However, he chose, after four years, to give up his apron for a much smaller house, the Wendel group. It is not a bank, but an investment company, created in 2002 to manage the fortune and holdings of the family of the same name, the former French empire of the Lorraine steel industry. This company has the particularity of being family-run, specializing in private investment and listed on the stock exchange. It buys companies, participates in their development and then resells them years later, with added value.
Duel
This simple model attracted the big banker, who obviously felt he had done the rounds of his job and wanted a more concrete activity, in direct contact with companies. It is all the more obvious that he would have made an ideal candidate to head one of the largest French banks, Société Générale.
Since the announcement of the departure of its CEO, Frédéric Oudéa, it has been looking for a new boss. According The echoesthe two favorites for this prestigious position would be the two leaders of the group’s flagship activities: investment banking, led by Slawomir Krupa, and retail banking, led by Sébastien Proto.
This duel illustrates the two primary uses of a financial institution: circulating money in the service of investment and helping households finance their purchases of housing or consumption. Activities that are useful to say the least, but which will not prevent unloved bankers (agencies are the first victims of street demonstrations) from having to perpetually seek and explain the meaning of their action.