Net banking profit after taxation for the Société Générale group in the past 2006 amounts to €5.221 billion, representing an increase of 18.6 percent compared to 2005. The group’s gross operating income amounts to €8.714 billion, which is an increase of 22.2 percent compared to the previous year. As of December 31, 2006, the group had 22.5 million clients and €422 billion under management. The year 2006 for the Société Générale Group was marked by new acquisitions, the most significant of which are Splitska banka, Bank Republic in Georgia, 2S Banka Spa in Italy, and a 20 percent stake in Rosebak in Russia. Retail banking outside France is one of the main drivers of the Société Générale Group’s development – it is a combination of new acquisitions in targeted areas (primarily Central and Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean) and organic growth in areas where the bank was previously present.
Revenue from retail banking outside France in the fourth quarter of 2006 recorded an increase of 19.1 percent compared to the same period last year, or an increase of 18.8 percent on an annual basis. Operating costs increased by 13.4 percent, which is the result of continuous investment in growth and productivity. The group continued to open branches outside France, with 399 new branches opened in 2006, bringing the current number of branches to 2,300. In 2006, the number of individual clients increased by 766,000, so currently 7.8 million people worldwide use the Group’s services. There was also significant growth in loans and deposits from individuals.
The annual growth rate of loan placements is 43.5 percent, which is the result of strong growth in housing and consumer loans in Central and Eastern Europe. Deposits grew at a rate of 13.9 percent. In the corporate sector, deposits increased by 16.6 percent and loan placements by 20.6 percent.
