Natixis has reported core business net revenues were up 12% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2017 and 13% in the first half of 2017, to €2.3bn and €4.5bn, respectively, fuelled by investment solutions and CIB. Structured products sales in the second quarter, at €2bn, increased by 78% from the same period last year, according to SRP data.

Growth in the investment solutions  business unit, where net revenues were up 11% year-on-year to €920m, was underpinned by the diversity and adaptation of the product range, both in asset management and insurance, where revenues advanced by 12% y-o-y to €696m and 13% y-o-y to €177m, respectively, according to the bank.

Asset management recorded net inflows of €9bn during the second quarter, including €8bn on long-term products, while AUM were down by €3bn compared to end-March 2017 to €834bn, due to adverse exchange-rate effects. In insurance overall turnover climbed 78% versus the second quarter of 2016 to reach €3bn.

Corporate & investment banking (CIB) also enjoyed strong momentum across all business lines, particularly in Asia, according to Natixis. Revenues grew 16% compared to 2Q16 and reached €1bn with the quarter notably boosted by further strong growth in investment banking and by significant y-o-y expansion in revenues from fixed-income and derivative solutions in the capital markets field.

Global markets net revenues (excluding the CVA/DVA desk), were up 20% on last year, to reach €566m in the second quarter of 2017, of which €361m posted by fixed income, commodities & treasury (FICT) and €205m by equity. In 1H17, they grew by 28% y-o-y fuelled by strong commercial momentum, notably for international platforms, since 1Q17. On Americas & Apac platforms, FICT revenues advanced 64% year on year in the second quarter of 2017. Net revenues for derivatives were up 34% compared to the second quarter of last year, according to the bank.

Natixis issued 52 structured products worth €2bn in its domestic market France during the second quarter of 2017, an increase of 78% in sales from the 19 products with a volume of €1.2bn that were launched in the same period last year. More than half of the products issued by the bank in 2Q17 were linked to the Euronext Cac Large 60 Ewer Index, the first and most successful of a group of so called 'market access indices' which the bank has developed since May 2015. During the first semester of 2017, three big campaigns linked to the Cac Large 60, from Groupama, Caisse D'Epargne and Barclays Wealth, sold a combined €900m in the French market.

Apart from its home market France, Natixis also issued structured products in Belgium, Sweden and the UK during the second quarter. In Belgium the bank issued two structured notes, via Crelan and VDK Spaarkbank, respectively, linked to the Euronext BeNe 40 Equal Weight ER, another of Natixis' 'market access indices' while Fund Opportunity Coupon SEK 2025, an eight-year income product linked to the Deutsche Conept Kaldemorgen LC fund, was distributed via Deutsche Bank.

In Sweden Natixis collaborated with Exceed for the launch of Certifikat Europeiska Fastighetsbolag Lock-In 1703B which was linked to the FTSE Epra/Nareit Developed Europe Index and in the UK the bank issued six products via Mariana Capital Markets, each linked to the FTSE 100, and 11 products via Meteor Asset Management.

'After faring well in the first quarter 2017, Natixis enjoyed a fine second quarter, fuelled particularly by sharp increases in both revenues and profitability in core businesses,' said Laurent Mignon (pictured), Natixis Chief Executive Officer, in a statement. 'These results testify to the successful application of our asset light strategy across all of our business lines with the resolute development of our asset management, insurance, M&A and payments activities whether in the financing area, where our originate-to-distribute model is working effectively.'

Click the link to view the full second quarter 2017 results for Natixis.

Related stories:
Equity derivatives bolster BNP Paribas' Q2 performance

Performance will tell us if market access indices are smart, Natixis

Natixis appoints global head of equity capital markets

La Banque Postale and Natixis fined for structured products shortcomings