Crédit Agricole S.A. increased third-quarter profit 11% to €1.991 billion, while the broader group expanded in Germany through a new digital bank and a proposed acquisition. The results show growth alongside differing lending trends across key markets.
Revenue at Crédit Agricole S.A. rose 7.5% from a year earlier to €7.092 billion. Gross operating income increased 14.6% to €3.164 billion, while expenses rose 2.4% to €3.928 billion and cost of risk climbed 19.6% to €585 million. Its cost/income ratio fell 2.8 percentage points to 55.4%. The company reported a 14.2% return on tangible equity and an 11.2% Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio at quarter end.
The wider Crédit Agricole Group, which includes regional banks that own 62.8% of Crédit Agricole S.A., posted revenue of €10.497 billion, up 10.7%, and net income of €2.780 billion, up 23%. Its cost/income ratio declined 4.5 percentage points to 56.5%, and its CET1 ratio was 17.3%. The group reported €491 billion in liquidity reserves.
Customer growth continued, with 573,000 new retail banking customers in the quarter: 429,000 in France and 144,000 internationally. Crédit Agricole reported 1.8 million new customers in the first nine months of 2026. Lending moved in different directions: French housing-loan production fell 4% year over year, while Italian loan production rose 17%, including gains of 26% in business lending and 9% in home lending.
Crédit Agricole launched Crédit Agricole Deutschland in October as a digital-first bank for German retail customers, building on an existing base of about one million retail customers in the country. The company says its German expansion is part of its ACT 2028 plan and notes that it has operated in Germany for more than 70 years.
On Oct. 12, Crédit Agricole announced an agreement with Lone Star Funds to acquire all of IKB Deutsche Industriebank. The company says IKB customers would gain access to its corporate and investment banking, leasing, factoring, trade finance, private banking, asset management and insurance services. Crédit Agricole estimates the deal would reduce its CET1 ratio by about 20 basis points at closing. Regulatory clearances, including antitrust and European Central Bank approval, are required; the company expects the transaction to close by the end of the second quarter of 2027.
