SocGen Says to Take Control of Russia's Rosbank

PARIS (Reuters) - French bank Societe Generale (SOGN.PA) said on Thursday it would exercise a $1.7 billion call option to take control of Russia's Rosbank (ROSB.MM) by buying a stake of around 30 percent from investment group Interros.

It said once the deal giving it a stake of 50 percent plus 1 share in Rosbank was completed in mid-February, it would make a mandatory offer to Rosbank's minority shareholders. SocGen already holds 20 percent less one share of the Russian bank.

France's second biggest listed bank said it expected the offer to minorities to lift its stake in Rosbank to 57.8 percent by the end of the first half of 2008 for a total price of $2.775 billion.

Rosbank has around 600 branches, giving it the largest private branch network in Russia, SocGen said.

(Reporting by Sudip Kar-gupta and Nick Antonovics; Editing by Rory Channing)