FT Reporters
BNP Paribas, France?s largest bank by assets, sees positive signs for 2012 despite reducing its dividend for 2011 and cutting its bonus pool.
The bank ended 2011 with a 50.6 per cent drop in quarterly net profit, weighed down by fresh Greek writedowns of 567m euros, but the results were better than expected and BNP is already seeing signs of improvement for this year.
Jean-Laurent Bonnaf?, BNP Paribas? chief executive, said: ?The beginning of the year has been quite strong in investment banking …[We see] some kind of stabilisation of the eurozone situation.
?Bonuses are going to be down by half in 2011. In any case, those remunerations are always in line with the financial results,? he added.
BNP?s fourth-quarter net profit of 765m euros beat analysts estimates of 574m euros. The bank posted fourth-quarter revenue of 9.69bn euros.
BNP said it had cut its cash balance sheet excluding certain activities by 12 per cent in 2011 to 965bn euros, allowing it to hit an core tier one ratio of 9.2 per cent by the end of 2011.
The bank said it was stepping up its debt-reduction plans with its investment banking division targeting a $65bn cut in US dollar funding needs by the end of 2012. Asset sales and restructuring costs will cost the unit 850m euros in one-off charges in 2012, it said.
The bank also said that it is confident that it will not have to take further writedowns on its Greek sovereign debt this year after the extra provisions in the fourth quarter of 2011.