11th Apr 2005 08:06
Barclays PLC11 April 2005 11 April, 2005 BARCLAYS TO ACQUIRE A CONTROLLING INTEREST IN FIAT'S IVECO VEHICLE FINANCE BUSINESS Barclays Asset and Sales Finance, the specialist asset backed lending providerof the Barclays Group, has agreed to form a new company with Iveco SpA ("Iveco")to provide commercial vehicle financing and leasing solutions to Iveco customersin Europe, initially in the UK, Italy, France, Germany and Switzerland, with ajoint intention to commence business in other European countries. Iveco will transfer certain subsidiaries of Iveco Finance to the new company andBarclays will then acquire a 51% share and controlling stake in the company fora consideration of £66.5m (€96.8m). The proposed transaction is conditional uponnecessary regulatory clearances. This transaction will expand Barclays Asset and Sales Finance's commercialvehicle expertise across Europe, by providing an opportunity to work with aEuropean commercial vehicle manufacturer which has leading market positions inall important commercial vehicle segments in Western Europe. Barclays Asset andSales Finance already has a strong presence in many of Iveco's principal marketsand this will provide opportunities for further expansion of existingoperations, as well as the development of new markets. The transaction alsoserves to accelerate the Barclays Group strategic aim of developing retail andcommercial banking activities in selected markets outside the UK. Iveco Finance is the prime supplier of hire purchase, finance leasing,instalment loans and contract hire solutions for Iveco commercial vehicleoperations in France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland and the UK.As at the end of 2004 it had total receivables of £1.51bn (€2.2bn). The Europeancommercial vehicle financing market is expected to grow at over twice the rateof Eurozone GDP over the medium term. Stephen Price, Managing Director of Barclays Asset and Sales Finance, commented,"This is a great opportunity, which combines the manufacturing strength, marketpresence and scale of a leading European commercial vehicle manufacturer withthe scale and resources of a global financial services provider. It willaccelerate the development of Barclays Asset and Sales Finance business inEurope by giving us a significant presence in a number of new markets plus theability to work with an acknowledged industry leader in the European commercialvehicle sector". Paolo Monferino, Chief Executive Officer of Iveco said, "This new company willallow the Iveco Finance business to become even more competitive and will assistus to provide even more innovative solutions to increasingly sophisticatedcustomer needs. It will enable an already successful business to be developed bydrawing on the balance sheet strength and asset finance expertise of Barclays". - ends - Contact at Barclays: Jo Thethi Tristan LaffordBarclays Public Relations, Barclays PLC Barclays Investor Relations, BarclaysPLCTel: +44 (0) 20 7116 6217 Tel: +44 (0) 20 7116 2928 Contact at Iveco: Georgio BertoldiIvecoTel: : +39 011 007 2023 About Barclays PLC Barclays PLC is a major global financial services provider primarily offeringbanking, investment banking and investment management services. Barclays ispresent in over 60 countries and employs over 78,400 people worldwide. With over300 years of history and expertise in banking, Barclays PLC has six majordivisions. UK Banking, delivers banking products and services to over 14 millionpersonal customers and 745,000 businesses. Barclaycard, is one of the leadingcredit card businesses in Europe with 13.4 million credit card customers acrossthe world. Barclaycard now incorporates all of the Group's UK secured and cardlending products and expertise. Barclays Capital, the investment bankingdivision, provides corporate, institutional and government clients withsolutions to their financing and risk management needs. Barclays GlobalInvestors, one of the world's largest asset managers and a leading provider ofinvestment management products and services. Private Clients, Barclays wealthmanagement operation, with over 300,000 affluent and high net worth clients.International Retail and Commercial Banking, the global retail and commercialbanking operation, with 2.2 million international clients in the Caribbean,France, Spain, Portugal, Italy and Africa. For more information about BarclaysPLC, please visit www.barclays.com About Barclays Asset and Sales Finance Barclays Asset and Sales Finance (BA&SF) specialises in asset based lending andworks with a broad range of international technology, industrial equipment andcommercial companies, serving 31,000 business customers in the UK and Europe. BA&SF also specialises in the factoring and invoice-discounting arena, providingworking capital management solutions The vendor business provides customisedfinance programmes to help manufacturers, dealers and distributors of assets toattract and retain profitable customers, increase sales and boost profitability.Working in partnership with our vendors we deliver integrated sales andmarketing activity, provide training to their key staff and product and industryknowledge. BA&SF has been acknowledged by Business Moneyfacts Magazine as the'Best Leasing & Asset Finance Provider' in the UK since 2002. For reportingpurposes Barclays Asset and Sales Finance is included in UK Business Bankingdivision of Barclays PLC. About Fiat SpA Founded in 1899, Fiat is an industrial enterprise focused on the automotivesector, serving customers in more than 190 countries around the world with anannual turnover in excess of €47 billion. With some 162,000 employees in 109 R&Dcentres and 192 plants worldwide, the Fiat Group is a global leader in theproduction of passenger cars, agricultural and construction equipment,industrial vehicles, production systems and automotive components. About Iveco SpA Iveco is a global company that produces a complete range of vehicles andengines. It is dedicated to the transport world and to the satisfaction of itscustomers, employing leading edge technologies and guaranteeing reliableperformance and levels of excellence in the quality of the products and servicesit offers its customers all over the world. Iveco's strategy is to generateprofitable growth, concentrating on its Customers and markets, and strengtheningthe technological content and competitiveness of its products. Transport Safety,Environmental Care and Productivity on the road are key elements of itsstrategy, together with technological innovation and lean enterprise. Ivecomanufactures and sells more than 160,000 commercial vehicles and 430,000 enginesin all parts of the world, for total revenues of about €9.3 billion. It operates49 plants in 19 different countries and 15 Research and Development centres,with 31,000 employees and 844 dealers. This document contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning ofSection 21E of the US Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and Section27A of the US Securities Act of 1933, as amended, with respect to certain of theBarclays Group's (the "Group") plans and its current goals and expectationsrelating to its future financial condition and performance, in particular withrespect to Barclays Asset and Sales Finance. These forward-looking statementscan be identified by the fact that they do not relate only to historical orcurrent facts. Forward-looking statements sometimes use words such as"anticipate", "target", "expect", "estimate", "intend", "plan", "goal","believe", or other words of similar meaning. By their nature, forward-lookingstatements involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to future events andcircumstances, including UK domestic and global economic and businessconditions, market related risks such as interest rate and exchange rate risks,the policies and action of governmental and regulatory authorities, changes inlegislation and the impact of competition, a number of which are beyond theGroup's control. As a result, the Group's actual future results may differmaterially from the plans, goals and expectations set forth in the Group'sforward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statements made by or on behalfof Barclays speak only as of the date they are made. Barclays does not undertaketo up-date forward-looking statements to reflect any changes in Barclay'sexpectations with regard thereto or any changes in events, conditions orcircumstances on which any such statement is based. The reader should, however,consult any additional disclosures that Barclays has made or may make indocuments it has filed or may file with the US Securities and Exchangecommission, including its most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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