Societe Generale announced Wednesday net banking income (NBI), equivalent to turnover, up 8.8% last year compared to 2021, to 28.06 billion euros, but its net profit was divided by almost three because of the hasty sale of its Russian subsidiary Rosbank.
2022 marks a decisive step for the group, commented in a press release the general manager Frdric Ouda, who will leave his place in May Slawomir Krupa, current head of financing and investment activities.
With a net profit of 2.02 billion euros last year, the Socit Generale group exceeded the expectations of analysts interviewed by the financial information provider Factset, who expected just under 1.5 billion euros. This is much less than the 5.6 billion euros in net profit earned in 2021, a record. But without the negative impact of the sale of Rosbank in the second quarter, Socit Generale would have done just as well in 2022.
Retail banking on the rise
In detail, the NBI of retail banking activities in France increased by 4.1% last year, to 8.84 billion euros, for a net profit down 6.8%, to 1.45 billion euros. euros.
The bank is engaged in a massive transformation plan for its branch networks: since January 1, it has united Socit Gnrale and Crdit du Nord under the same red and black banner, SG.
The international retail banking networks, grouped with insurance and specialized services, also performed well, progressing both in turnover (+12.4% to 9.12 billion euros) and in profit net last year (+14.1% 2.38 billion euros).
The corporate and investment banking businesses are also growing, by 14.3% in turnover (10.08 billion euros) and 20.3% in net profit (2.43 billion euros) .
But the year remains marked by a charge of more than 3 billion euros passes under the sale of Rosbank to the Russian investment fund Interros, founded by the oligarch Vladimir Potanin, close to Vladimir Putin.
90% of net profit flowed to shareholders
The bank also announced on Wednesday its distribution policy for its 2022 financial year, namely a cash dividend of 1.70 euros per share, accompanied by a share buyback program of approximately 440 million euros, equivalent to approximately €0.55 per share.
This distribution plan is particularly generous for the shareholders. Totaling 1.8 billion euros, it is therefore equivalent to 90% of the net result published by the company for last year.
The stock market price is one of Socit Gnrale’s key projects. Its valuation fluctuates between 20 and 25 billion euros, three times less than its longstanding competitor BNP Paribas.
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