In a complex and volatile economic and financial
environment, with strong pressure on margins, increased
risk costs and greater capital requirements, CaixaBank has
obtained robust results thanks to high levels of commercial
business, increasing its market share and maintaining its
banking business volumes in a contracting market. During
the first quarter of 2012, CaixaBank consolidated its
leading position in the retail banking sector and
strengthened levels of both liquidity and solvency.
The active management of operational margins, business
volumes and profitability, along with the margins from its
fixed-income portfolio, all combined with a strict cost
rationalisation policy has allowed CaixaBank to maintain a
strong capacity to generate recurring income, with net
operating income totalling 889 million euros, up 25.3% on
the same period in 2011.
The generation of income and the availability of the
general allowance fund, which has remained at 1,835 million
euros since the end of the 2009 financial year, has allowed
the CaixaBank Group to absorb all of its allowance needs,
estimated under the new requirements at 2,436 million
euros, during the first quarter. Following the impact of
this operation, CaixaBank Group net profit totalled 48
million euros (- 84%).
CaixaBank, with Isidro Fainé as Chairman and Juan María Nin
as Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, maintained
its business volumes over the course of the last quarter
(+0.5%), strengthening its high levels of solvency (Core
Capital of 12.4%) and significantly increasing liquidity
(29,436 million).