France's Caisse des Depots, often described as the armed wing of the country's Treasury, yesterday sought to stem the mounting political outcry over its role in controversial share dealings in EADS, the Franco-German aerospace group.
The state-owned institution, which is often used as a guarantor of stable French ownership for French companies, yesterday insisted it had not been asked by the government to acquire EADS shares in April 2006, just weeks before the aerospace group announced a profit warning that sent the shares tumbling.
