Capital gains recorded in 2016 dampened BancWest’s first-quarter earnings, even as BNP Paribas’ U.S. subsidiary posted year-over-year loan and deposit growth.
Revenues at the holding company for the $75 billion-asset Bank of the West in San Francisco and the $19 billion-asset First Hawaiian Bank in Honolulu declined 5% from the first quarter of 2016, when BancWest recorded significant capital gains from the sale of securities and loans. If not for that one-time event, revenues in the first quarter would have been 5.3% higher than they were a year ago. Pretax net income declined 23.1%, but would have been up 16% if not for those capital gains a year ago, BNP Paribas said.
“The revenues of the operating divisions were significantly higher thanks to good business growth. Costs were well under control and the cost of risk was down,” BNP Paribas CEO Jean-Laurent Bonnafé said in a press release.
Loans increased 7% to $70.4 billion, driven by “sustained growth in individual and corporate loans,” BNP Paribas said, while deposits increased 11.4% to $76.1 billion.
Operating expenses increased just 0.8% from the first quarter of 2016, reflecting cost control efforts.
BNP Paribas also reduced its holdings in First Hawaiian Bank by selling roughly 21% of its shares to the public. BNP Paribas now owns 62% of First Hawaiian.
