Positive quarterly results for two of the main European banks: Banco Santander and Credit Suisse. The Spanish giant closed the first quarter with a net profit of 1,86 billion euros, up 14,3% on the year, mainly thanks to the favorable exchange rate in Brazil. Without the impact of exchange rates, the increase would have been 10 percent.
Net income increased by 77% in Brazil, thanks to "the appreciation of the Brazilian real", explained the bank, but also to the growing number of customers and the reduction in provisions for insolvency.
Behind Brazil (with an impact of 634 million) the United Kingdom ranks second (416 million); for a long time the leading market, it is now feeling the effects of the unknown Brexit and net income decreased by 8% due to the depreciation of the pound. The group gained 1,5 million customers compared to the first quarter of 2016.
As it regards instead Credit Suisse, the quarter closed with a return to profit of 596 million Swiss francs, against the loss of 302 million recorded in the same period last year.
In addition to the release of quarterly data, the Swiss bank also announced a capital increase of approximately 4 billion francs which will allow it to strengthen its capital. The objective is to bring the Cet1 ratio to 13,4%.
In the press release, Credit Suisse also announced its intention to abandon its plans to list part of Swiss Bank, the subsidiary dedicated to its activities in Switzerland.
