John Tagliabue profiles René Carron, new chairman of Crédit Agricole.
Most French bankers enjoy their cheese. René Carron goes one better. He owns a herd of 60 cows, producing milk for tomme de Savoie, the cheese of his native Savoy.
But then Mr. Carron, 60, the new chairman of Crédit Agricole, the big French bank, is no ordinary banker. The latest proof of the difference came two weeks ago, when, in a deft negotiating strike, he reached an agreement to acquire control of Crédit Lyonnais for $16 billion, in a deal that would create France’s biggest bank, second only to Deutsche Bank as the largest in Europe.