Has Europe’s BlackRock outgrown its pond?

THE PRACTICECEO of elevating a company’s chief executive to chairman has come to be frowned upon, if only because a new boss often struggles to break free if her predecessor is looking over her shoulder. Not so at Amundi, Europe’s biggest money manager. In May Yves Perrier, its since 2010, will move upstairs and Valérie Baudson, his current deputy, takes the helm as chief executive. Shareholders have reacted to the news rather well: Amundi’s share price has risen by 11% since it was announced in February.That shows how much they value continuity at the firm. Under Mr Perrier Amundi’s assets under management and net income more than doubled, to €1.7trn ($2.1trn) and €962m by the end of 2020. Its market capitalisation has swollen from €7.5bn in 2015, when it went public, to around €15bn. The firm is still a cut below America’s titans: BlackRock, for instance, manages about $9trn in assets. Yet Amundi is nearly twice as big as its closest continental rival, and the only European firm in the global top ten. The question for Ms Baudson is whether the firm has much more room to grow.