Societe Generale becomes second French bank to repay emergency government funding early

September 23rd, 2009 Potash Corp. prices notes offeringSASKATOON, Canada — Potash Corp.

August 7th, 2009 Banker bonus sparks anger in FrancePARIS — French President Nicolas Sarkozy wants to meet with leaders at BNP Paribas SA, his office said Friday, after a report that the bank had earmarked euro1 billion ($1.44 billion) in extra compensation sparked populist anger. Sarkozy hopes to meet with the bank's leaders Aug.

August 6th, 2009 Top executive at French bank SocGen resignsPARIS — Societe Generale SA says that a top executive whose career was damaged by the French bank's multibillion dollar trading scandal last year has resigned. Jean-Pierre Mustier is the former head of corporate and investment banking and one-time boss of disgraced trader Jerome Kerviel.

August 6th, 2009 Top SocGen executive resignsPARIS — A top executive of Societe Generale SA whose career was damaged by a multibillion dollar trading scandal that rocked the bank has resigned after financial regulators opened an insider trading inquiry against him, the bank said Thursday. The bank said in a statement that both Jean-Pierre Mustier, who most recently headed assets management, and Robert Day, a non-executive director at the bank who is also a target of the probe, reject allegations of insider trading.

August 5th, 2009 Societe Generale 2Q net profit down by halfPARIS — Societe Generale SA said Wednesday its net profit fell 52 percent in the second quarter as the French bank wrote down its derivatives holdings and suffered increased losses on bad loans. France's second largest bank reported net profit of €309 million ($445 million) for the three months ended June 30, down from €644 million a year earlier.

August 4th, 2009 BNP Paribas Q2 net profit up 6.6 percentPARIS — French bank BNP Paribas said Tuesday its net profit rose 6.6 percent in the second quarter as its retail and investment banking divisons succeeded in attracting new business amid the continued global economic downturn. The Paris-based bank reported net profit of euro1.6 billion ($2.3 billion) in the three months ended June 30, up from euro1.5 billion a year earlier.

July 6th, 2009 Societe Generale expects profit in 2nd quarterPARIS — Societe Generale, France's second-largest bank, said Monday that its second quarter net income will be "slightly positive" thanks to its corporate and investment banking units. The bank said its overall net income will be hit by a euro1.3 billion ($1.82 billion) writedown from credit default swaps and debt instruments.

June 9th, 2009 Stocks edge higher as investors look to banksNEW YORK — Investors are showing little reaction to word that 10 of nation's largest banks can repay $68 billion in bailout money. Stocks are moderately higher but traders are reacting coolly to the Treasury Department's announcement that the banks, which were not named, will be allowed to repay the money they received from the $700 billion emergency rescue fund created by Congress at the height of the financial crisis in October.

May 14th, 2009 Credit Agricole 1Q net profit falls 77 percentPARIS — French bank Credit Agricole SA said Thursday its net profit fell 77 percent in the first quarter as the global financial crisis continued to weigh on its asset management, insurance and private banking activities. France's largest retail bank by clients reported net profit of euro202 million ($275 million) for the first three months of the year, down from euro892 million a year earlier.

May 8th, 2009 French bank Societe Generale posts 1Q lossPARIS — French bank Societe Generale said Thursday it returned to a loss in the first quarter after the further devaluation of its U.S. real estate-linked assets caused it to take nearly euro2 billion ($2.7 billion) in new writedowns and provisions.

May 6th, 2009 BNP Paribas 1Q profit drops 21 percentPARIS — French bank BNP Paribas said Wednesday its net profit slumped 21 percent in the first quarter as its retail banking activities in the United States were hammered amid the global economic downturn. Paris-based BNP Paribas, the euro zone's largest bank by deposits, said net profit fell to euro1.56 billion ($2.08 billion) in the first quarter from euro1.98 billion a year earlier.

April 29th, 2009 Societe Generale chairman to resign over criticismPARIS — Societe Generale chairman Daniel Bouton said Wednesday he will resign from the French bank, saying repeated attacks on him were a threat to the bank's health. In a statement, Bouton said "Like any manager, I have certainly made mistakes" during his leadership of France's second largest bank, "but the strategy adopted by Societe Generale has made it one of the finest banks in the euro zone." "The repeated attacks against me personally in France for the past fifteen months affect me, but most of all, they risk harming the bank and its 163,000 employees," Bouton added, saying it was "better for me to withdraw, proud of having led a wonderful company." Bouton was Societe Generale's chief executive in January 2008 when the bank announced one of the world's largest trading scandals, which caused a massive loss.

April 29th, 2009 PARIS - Daniel Bouton, chairman of the French bank Societe Generale, was to quit following criticism over risky investments and massive losses, the Le Figaro newspaper said Wednesday. Bouton said he handed in his resignation 'to protect the bank', the paper reported.

April 14th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Bailed out US investment bank Goldman Sachs has reported a much stronger-than-expected first-quarter profit of $1.81 billion, bouncing back from its worst quarter as a public company. The 140-year-old firm Monday also set plans to raise $5 billion through a sale of stock, saying it wants to become the first big bank to repay the $10 billion in federal loans extended during last October's financial sector meltdown.

March 25th, 2009 PARIS - French President Nicolas Sarkozy has said that there should be no more severance payments or bonuses to executives of French firms who have performed badly. 'There must be no more 'golden handshakes'.