BNP Paribas third-quarter profit rises about 13% and beats analyst forecasts

Profit beats forecasts

BNP Paribas reported its third-quarter results on Wednesday, 28 October, and profit came in above what analysts had expected. Sources put net income growth at between 13% and 14% year on year, depending on the outlet: ANSA gives €3.4 billion, Handelsblatt €3.46 billion and the Financial Times €3.5 billion. ANSA puts the same quarter of 2025 at about €3 billion. Consensus figures cited in the reports were €3.2 billion and €3.23 billion, so the bank beat the forecast on either measure. Revenue rose 9.5% to about €13.7 billion, while operating costs grew 5.3% to more than €8 billion. In the second quarter, net profit had jumped 33.4% year on year to €4.3 billion.

Equities trading leads the gains

The investment bank carried the quarter, with income from equities trading up 50% year on year, according to Handelsblatt and Bloomberg. Bloomberg reported that BNP became the second large European lender to outperform US stock traders in the third quarter, after Barclays had done the same. Handelsblatt put the average equities growth of the five largest US rivals at 37%. La Libre reports that the corporate and investment bank posted revenue of €5.2 billion, lifted by equities markets and securities services. Yann Gerardin, the chairman of the division, described the period this way.

“Our clients were extremely active in managing their portfolios during the third quarter.”

Bloomberg also reported that European clients set aside their reluctance and engaged more actively last quarter, which helped lift the division's revenue.

Commercial and specialised businesses

Commercial banking, covering France, Belgium and Italy, saw revenue rise 9.2% to €4.7 billion. The specialised businesses generated €6.8 billion, up 3.6%, but their contributions differed sharply. Car leasing revenue fell almost 30% as lower used-vehicle prices weighed on the unit, La Libre reports. Asset management, insurance and savings grew revenue 4.3% to €2.5 billion, while the integration of Axa IM, acquired in 2025, continued.

Corporate and investment bank5.2

Commercial banking (France, Belgium, Italy)4.7

Asset management, insurance and savings2.5

Corporate and investment bank

5.2 € billion

Commercial banking (France, Belgium, Italy)

4.7 € billion

Asset management, insurance and savings

2.5 € billion

Data from the article text

Buyback, targets and French exposure

BNP Paribas announced a €1.3 billion share buyback. ANSA says the European Central Bank authorised it, and Handelsblatt reports it will be carried out in November. The bank said its core capital ratio would exceed its 13% target by the end of the year, and Handelsblatt notes the bank had reached its core capital goal ahead of schedule. BNP confirmed its targets for 2026 and through 2028, and it plans to present a strategic plan to 2030 on 2 February. Investor worries over French public finances weighed on the stock, which Handelsblatt says fell 0.9 points on Wednesday morning. Investor nerves about the budget, street protests and an uncertain presidential election next year have pushed French long-term borrowing costs above 5% for the first time since 2002. BNP said it held €19 billion of French sovereign bonds, under 1% of its balance sheet, with all but €3 billion held to maturity, and that the wider French borrowing costs had cut its core capital ratio by 2 basis points.