BNP Paribas Q2 net profit 3.1% up buoyed by corporate, investment banking arm

BNP Paribas, France’s largest bank in terms of assets, on Wednesday reported a 3.1 percent growth in its second-quarter net profit to €2.47 billion ($2.8 billion) out of €11.22 billion in revenues.

The bank said that a strong performance by its corporate and investment banking division had buoyed its profits during the second quarter.

It attributed its performance to strong growth at its corporate and investment banking unit, which saw its overall revenue during the quarter rise 4 percent to €3.1 billion.

Favorable market conditions as well as the first effects of a €350 million cost-cutting plan launched in February beefed up the unit’s profitability, said BNP Paribas.

The bank has signed a preliminary agreement with German lender Deutsche Bank to take control of its prime brokerage business in a bid to expand its market share.

BNP Paribas CFO Lars Machenil told CNBC’s Julianna Tatelbaum on Wednesday that progress is “going much faster than expected.”

Machenil also addressed the bank’s plan to continue to increase profitability in the current low interest rate environment.

“Interest rates are low for a while and that is why we continue our adaptation and that’s why we even stepped up the adaptation in this quarter, to make sure that we can be ready in that environment to help our bottom line to grow,” he said.

Source: Reuters and CNBC