BNP Paribas stays resilient despite tough year - corporate real estate

Friday, March 12, 2010

Corporate real estate giant stays strong despite €60 million profit drop

By Ashley Brunskill

The corporate real estate arm of European bank BNP Paribas has described its performance as "resilient" despite a decrease in profits last year.

Results for 2009 showed a pre-tax profit of €76.4 million (£69.5 million) which represents a €60 million drop from 2008.

Turnover for 2009 was €554 million, a drop of €112 million from 2008 and almost €200 million down from 2007.

BNP Paribas' report said that its business model had remained "strong even in the context of a difficult market".

The report also claimed that "a good balance" across its business portfolio allowed the company to perform well "in all cycles".

Although BNP Paribas has its headquarters in Paris, its second global headquarters is based in London. Many of its corporate real estate staff are to be relocated to state of the art offices at 5 Aldermanbury Square as part of a group streamlining policy.

The company employs around 3,500 people across Europe in 29 countries.

Source: ask-re The Property People LLP