Net income Group share for the first 9 months was €692 million, including €289 million in the third quarter of 2009. These solid results were generated in a climate of persistent economic deterioration, but there were a few positive signs, confirming the strength of the business model that the Group adopted in early 2008.
The model is based primarily on a powerful retail bank - with an average market share in France of some 25% - of which the activities show strong dynamism. In addition, risk-related costs are stabilising.
- The Regional Banks delivered excellent commercial results, with robust growth in deposits, including a 13.3% year-on-year jump in passbook deposits, an array of services that meet customer expectations (over 160,000 M6 Mozaic cards ordered in one month), and a substantial pick-up in lending since July. This restored momentum pushed up net banking income from the Regional Banks' customer business by 7.7% over the first 9 months.
- LCL's business performance was of comparable quality, with over 110,000 net new individual accounts added since the beginning of the year.
- Internationally, the subsidiaries have contained the fall in revenues in countries that were more severely affected by the crisis than France. In Italy, Banca Finanza ranked Cariparma FriulAdria the No. 1 major bank
group on the basis of financial strength, profitability and productivity. In Greece, a restructuring and development plan has been launched to return Emporiki to profits by 2011. The first signs of measures taken in March are now visible.
The business model is also underpinned by high-performing specialised business lines that combine expertise with economies of scale:
- Sofinco Finaref is the leader in consumer finance, with like-for-like revenue growth of 8% over the first 9 months. Its intermediation ratio is below 80%- one of the best in the sector, despite high risk-related costs, which have now stabilised;
- The Asset management division is No. 1 in France and Europe in mutual funds, with strong business momentum generating over €6 billion in new inflows in the third quarter alone. Its cost/income ratio of 46.1% in the third quarter is the best in the European asset management industry;
- In Insurance, the third quarter was excellent, reflecting solid business momentum that outpaced the market average by far. Results were excellent, owing primarily to active but conservative management of investments. In life insurance, the Group's 15.1% market share ranks it No. 2 in France among all insurance providers.
The business model includes a deliberately lowered risk profile in Corporate and investment banking, which was refocused on its areas of expertise. During the third quarter of 2009, the strength of the business franchise was confirmed, with revenues from structured finance up 5.6% compared to the second quarter thanks to robust growth in project finance (No. 2 worldwide), export finance (No. 2 worldwide) and aircraft finance (No. 1 worldwide). Revenues from Capital markets and investment banking reflect a normalisation of the market. Fixed income revenues remained high while the Equity segment, and particularly Brokerage, picked up at the end of the quarter. The negative contribution from discontinuing operations contracted appreciably in the third quarter compared to the previous quarter.
On the whole, results for the third quarter reflect a clearly positive trend: the 3.5%1 quarter-on-quarter rise in revenues coupled with a further 1.2%1 decline in costs resulted in a 14.7%1 rise in gross operating income. Operating income increased by 31.4% even when taking into account the persistently high but now stabilised risk-related costs.
CrГ©dit AgricoleDate: 19.11.2009