Abstract

Since its creation in 2010 as the merger of the asset management arms of two major French banks, Crédit Agricole and Société Générale, Amundi has shown a strong consolidation of its business activities and has managed to resist well to the financial crisis through cost reductions and synergies. With €746.2 billion (US$970 billion) of asset under management (AUM) on March 31st 2013, Amundi is ranked number 1 in France, number 2 in Europe and number 9 in the world. With an excellent reputation and a cost to income ratio at 54%, the company has the potential to grow as a strong global player. With subsidiaries in Hong-Kong, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei and joint-ventures with major local players in India, South-Korea and China, the company is aiming to further expand its presence in the dynamic Asian market to grow its network size, client base and assets under management, as well as to position itself on markets with large future potential. In such a vast region with large disparities, the strategy that Amundi leads is largely opportunistic. Nevertheless, it is important to correctly choose the focus of its strategy: further development of existing joint-ventures vs. expansion to new countries, and the way it could enter new countries: fully-owned subsidiary vs. joint-venture. This case will thus tackle business strategic issues such as extending activities for long-term positioning, choosing the appropriate new markets to enter, developing the core competence in an environment, where investment mentalities differ.

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