Commerzbank feels the tailwind.
The cost of the renovation has almost been digested, and day-to-day business is going better again.
This nourishes the board's confidence for the year as a whole.
Frankfurt / Main - Commerzbank is aiming for an annual profit after returning to the black in the summer.
“The implementation of our strategy is proceeding according to plan and the operative business is also developing well.
For the year as a whole, we are therefore expecting a positive group result despite the renovation costs, ”explained CEO Manfred Knof.
In the third quarter, the institute earned 472 million euros in day-to-day business, almost three times as much as a year earlier.
The bank also benefited from the fact that it had to set aside significantly less money for possible loan defaults than in the corona crisis year 2020. For the year as a whole, the management board now expects less than 700 million euros in risk provisioning.
The bottom line was a profit of 403 million euros for the period from July up to and including September after a loss of 60 million euros in the same period of the previous year.
Thanks to the good third quarter, Commerzbank is back in the black for the year as well.
For the first nine months there is a total of 9 million euros in surplus on the balance sheet after a loss of 168 million euros a year earlier.
"The figures for the third quarter are very encouraging," said CFO Bettina Orlopp.
“We achieved solid returns with low risk provisions and our costs under control.
The capital ratio remains strong.
These advances give us a tailwind. "
Management continues to assume that it will be able to increase earnings - i.e. total revenues - for the year as a whole.
After nine months, earnings totaled 6.36 billion euros - an increase of 3.3 percent over the same period of the previous year.
In 2020 as a whole, the institute had generated revenues of around 8.2 billion euros.
The Management Board expects the core capital ratio to be around 13.5 percent for the year as a whole.
The crisis buffer had reached this value at the end of September.
In the second quarter, costs for downsizing and branch closings had brought Commerzbank deep into the red.
In addition, there was a write-off of 200 million euros for the canceled outsourcing of securities processing.
In addition, provisions due to the ruling by the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) on bank charges from April reduced the result.
The Karlsruhe judges had decided that banks must obtain the consent of their customers in the event of changes to general terms and conditions.
Many bank customers can now claim back part of fees that have been paid too much.
Commerzbank set aside a further 33 million euros for possible repayments in the third quarter, and in the second quarter it was 66 million euros.
The money house, whose largest shareholder is the German state, has tightened the austerity course under the chairman of the board, Knof, who has been in office since January.
According to Commerzbank, a good half of the targeted cut of 10,000 gross full-time employees has now been achieved or agreed.
At the end of September of the current year, the institute had a total of 38,432 full-time employees in Germany and abroad.
The bank wants to almost halve its branch network in Germany from 790 to 450 locations.
240 branches are to close this year, and the domestic branch closings are to be completed in 2022.
The international network is also being thinned out.
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