Societe Generale’s cost of risk stood at 54 basis points due to good performance of loan portfolio along with prudent provisioning
A Société Générale Expresbank office in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. (Credit: Brejnev/Wikipedia.)
Societe Generale has reported a net income of €470m for the fourth quarter (Q4) 2020, a 28.1% decrease compared to €654m for the same quarter in 2019.
The French investment bank reported an operating income of €798m for Q4 2020, a 40.4% decrease compared to €1.33bn for the same period of the previous year.
The bank reported a net cost of risk of €689m for Q4 2020, an increase of 85.7% compared to €371m for the same period in 2019.
Societe Generale said that year 2020 have been marked by a global health crisis, the economic and social consequences have affected its business.
Its cost of risk stood at 54 basis points due to its good performance of the loan portfolio, along with prudent provisioning.
Societe Generale CEO Frédéric Oudéa said: “The Q4 results provide further confirmation of the rebound in our businesses observed in Q3 after a beginning of the year marked by the impacts of the Covid crisis.
“We are therefore entering 2021 with confidence and determination with, as a priority, the execution of our strategic roadmap.
“Consistent with our raison d’être, we will continue to support our customers in all the transformations accelerated by this crisis, whether they concern the growing use of digital technologies or increased attention to corporate social responsibility issues.”
The financial services company’s French retail banking business reported a net income of €104m for Q4 2020, a 54.8% decrease compared to €230m for Q4 2019.
The international retail banking and financial services unit of the company reported a net income of €376m for Q4 2020, a decrease of 18.8% compared to €463m for the same quarter the prior year.
The firm’s global banking and investor solutions business reported a net income of €280mfor Q4 2020, a 3.8% decrease compared to €291m for the same period in 2019.
The bank’s return on equity (ROE) for the reported period was 2.4%, which decreased from 3.7% for the corresponding period in the prior year.
Its common equity tier 1 (CET1) ratio at 31 December 2020 was at 13.4%, or around 440 basis points above the regulatory requirement.