Brussels, 04/10/2011 (Agence Europe) - With Dexia shares crumbling and restructuring under consideration, the French and Belgian authorities moved on Tuesday 4 October to give assurances that they will underwrite the financial commitments of the Franco-Belgian bank. “As part of the restructuring of Dexia, the Belgian and French states, in coordination with our central banks, will take any necessary measures to ensure the protection of depositors and creditors. To this end, they pledge to guarantee the funds raised by Dexia”, say Finance Ministers François Baroin of France and Didier Reynders of Belgium in a joint press release. “The Belgian and French states will answer the call, just as they did in 2008”, said Baroin on the sidelines of the Ecofin Council in Luxembourg. “Both France and Belgium stand ready to provide a guarantee for Dexia funds, no matter the form that that takes”, added Reynders. Dexia, which received a bailout worth €6 billion of public funds in 2008, now finds itself particularly exposed to sovereign debt, which is severely hampering its quest for liquidity. The idea of a “bad bank”, with French and Belgian state guarantees, to hold the bank's toxic assets, is certainly one which will be considered. Also a possibility is the sale of less strategic assets, such as the Turkish Denisbank and Crediop and Sabadell, Dexia's Italian and Spanish local authority funding subsidiaries. (MB/transl.rt)