French Banks Short Of €8.8B Capital

A number of French lenders are seeking to raise a total €8.8 billion in capital.

A number of French lenders are seeking to raise a total €8.8 billion in capital, The Wall Street Journal reports. The lenders need the money to meet tougher capital requirements designed to help stabilize the euro zone and handle its sovereign debt crisis, according to the Bank of France. The final shortfall of capital will be disclosed in November.

The largest French lender by market cap BNP Paribas requires €2.1 billion and Societe Generale, the second largest, has a €3.3 billion shortfall. Mutual lender group BPCE will also need €3.3 billion to fill the gap. The European Banking Authority has said banks need to ensure that their core tier 1 ratio reaches a level of 9 percent by the end of June.

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