France’s second-largest bank, the Societe Generale, has warned that its 2012 profit target will most likely not be reached after its second-quarter profits fell to $1.06 billion.
In a statement released to the press, the bank stated that its net profit was down 31% from a year ago and that this was the result of the bank’s exposure to Greek sovereign debt.
Frederic Oudea, the group’s chairman and chief executive, blamed the uncertainty of the global economic and financial situation that the Greek debt had caused. He stated that “These results testify to the Group’s resilience in an uncertain economic environment.”
The bank holds approximately 2.65 billion euros of Greek sovereign bonds and it has had to make a 395 million euros write down on its Greek debt holdings. However, the Societe Generale is not the only bank to suffer as a result of the Greek debt. BNP Paribas, has announced that it would be setting aside 534 million euros to cover its expected Greek losses.
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