Casino - comment

Another day, and another announcement. This time, confirming that Fimalac is considering a €150m participation as part of the Křetínský proposal. We are debating the rationale/motivation of these announcements, and the easiest conclusion is that they are to satisfy regulators' requirement to dispel press rumours.

However, the confirmation of two different parties enables the Company to ensure some competitive tension in the process. We caution on all of these proposals and remind the devil will be in the detail. The blocking of the Couche-Tard merger with Carrefour highlights the importance French officials place on the grocery segment and coupled with the high number of employees at Casino, a “French solution” may be sought after all. This may be the reason Auchan supermarket chain appears to be in discussions with the Křetínský consortium about a future tie-up.