Fortis asset sale may not impact Ping An

Fortis shareholders' approval of the sale of its banking units to French bank BNP Paribas SA will not affect the financial performance of Ping An, the largest single shareholder in the Belgian company, experts said.

Shareholders at a meeting in Ghent, Belgium, on Tuesday endorsed the sale with a 73 percent majority, though Ping An voted against the deal, as it believes the dismantlement of Fortis violates corporate governance procedures and destroys shareholder value.

"Since Ping An has written off some 22.8 billion yuan on its stake in Fortis, or 95 percent of its total investment, the result could hardly be worse," said Wang Xiaogang, a senior insurance analyst with Shanghai-based Orient Securities.