When the final group of Fortis shareholders voted to approve the Belgo-Dutch bank’s role in the three-way bid for ABN AMRO, the decision propelled Fortis into the European ‘Champions League’ of banks. The deal has been transformational for Fortis; more so than for its two partners. It has created the dominant player in the Benelux region, taking it to fifth position overall in Europe and third in private banking, and spawned a top-tier asset manager.
In terms of market capitalisation, at just under €50bn, Fortis is now larger than Deutsche Bank and close to Credit Suisse. Measured by revenues, it has emerged as the number three banking group in the world, behind Citigroup and Crédit Agricole, according to the Fortune Global 500.
