BNP Paribas SA (BNP), France's largest bank, said third-quarter profit more than doubled after it posted higher revenue at the investment-banking unit. Net income climbed to 1.32 billion euros ($1.7 billion) from 541 million euros a year earlier, the Paris-based bank said in an e-mailed statement today. That exceeded the 1.06 billion- euro average estimate of eight analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. BNP Paribas, led by Chief Executive Officer Jean-Laurent Bonnafe, has reached higher capital levels under new Basel III rules than rivals including Germany's Deutsche Bank AG (DBK) as European lenders cut assets and reduce corporate- and investment-banking jobs. The French firm, among banks hurt last year by a liquidity crunch and losses on Greek sovereign debt, plans to expand services to affluent U.S. clients and to corporate- and investment-banking clients in Asia. “Thanks to its balanced and diversified business model," BNP Paribas “confirmed this quarter its resilience in a challenging economic environment," Bonnafe, 51, said in the statement. Pretax profit at BNP Paribas's corporate- and investment- banking unit, or CIB, rose 7.3 percent to 732 million euros, beating analysts' estimate of 686 million euros. Revenue from equity and advisory operations climbed 51 percent to 444 million euros, while fixed-income sales more than doubled to 1.13 billion euros. Greek Writedown The bank, which took 3.2 billion euros in writedowns on Greek government debt in 2011, has rushed to cut its sovereign debt holdings in most European countries since mid-2011 to help protect capital levels. BNP Paribas was among three French lenders whose credit rating was cut by Standard & Poor's last month on concern it may be hurt by Europe's protracted economic weakness and a potential housing slump in France. BNP Paribas, Cofidis and Banque Solfea were downgraded by S&P as “these groups are more vulnerable to the impact of rising economic risks in the euro zone, particularly in France and countries in southern Europe," the ratings company said on Oct. 26. French banks also face “potentially limited, but still noteworthy, impact from an ongoing correction in the housing market," S&P said last month. The ratings company revised its outlook to negative from stable for BNP Paribas and 10 other French lenders, including Societe Generale SA (GLE) and Credit Agricole SA (ACA), France's second and third largest by market value, respectively. Funding Stabilizing S&P's move came as France's largest banks have found their funding situation stabilizing, thanks to 1 trillion euros in long-term loans by the European Central Bank and ECB President Mario Draghi's agreement in September to buy the bonds, under some conditions, of euro nations whose sovereign yields have soared. French banks, the biggest foreign holders of private and public debt in the euro-area's problem economies, are benefiting from the ECB's moves as the crisis enters its fourth year. BNP Paribas has gained 29 percent this year in Paris trading, giving it a market value of 49 billion euros. Societe Generale has risen 47 percent in 2012 and Credit Agricole has increased about 40 percent. Asset Disposals Both BNP Paribas and Credit Agricole operate Italian branch networks. French banks held $540 billion in private and public debt in Greece, Ireland, Italy, Portugal and Spain at the end of June, Bank for International Settlements data show. BNP Paribas last year joined Societe Generale and Credit Agricole in shrinking balance sheets and slashing sovereign debt holdings. The lender has boosted its capital level with retained earnings and asset disposals. The company began trimming its balance sheet last year as capital requirements and funding costs increased. The bank at the end of September reached a target of 45 billion euros in risk-weighted asset cuts at the CIB division. The French firm also has achieved 90 percent of its planned job reductions at the unit. Securities firms in the U.S. and Europe have posted gains in revenue since Draghi's July pledge to defend the euro with “whatever it takes" sparked a rally in bond markets. Deutsche Bank last week posted an increase in third-quarter profit as revenue from trading bonds and other products jumped 67 percent. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) last month said its fixed-income, currencies and commodities revenue climbed 28 percent in the third quarter from a year earlier. Retail Banking BNP's total retail-banking pretax profit was 1.71 billion euros in the third quarter, 8.8 percent higher than last year, the bank said. Earnings at the French branch network rose to 525 million euros from 487 million euros a year earlier and Belgian consumer-banking pretax profit gained 8.5 percent to 192 million euros. The lender's Italian retail-banking network, Banca Nazionale del Lavoro, had third-quarter pretax earnings of 141 million euros, down 6.6 percent from a year earlier, beating analysts' estimates for 109 million euros. Bloomberg
