When questioned, AXA France recognizes “a usual capital management operation” in a declaration sent to Reuters.
Axa Banque, which offers a full range of banking products dedicated to individuals ranging from credits to savings booklets, has undergone a strong degradation of its activity for several years.
In particular, it awarded a 68% drop in the overall production of credits in 2023 for a gross operating profit of -45 million euros, said one of the internal sources.
The income of the banking activity of AXA France thus emerged upon 32% in 2023 to 93 million euros, according to its annual report, “mainly due to pressure on margins at Axa Banque France in the context of increase in interest rates “.
“2023 was a year marked by the increase in refinancing costs due to the monetary policy of the ECB. Despite the tense economic context, which significantly impacted retail banking in France, Axa Banque has preserved its Financial stability and strengthen its solvency ratios, with the support of AXA France, “the insurer told Reuters.
Due to the increase in interest rates, Axa Banque temporarily suspended its mortgage activity in 2023 which “restarted satisfactorily in 2024”, adds Axa France.
Over the first six months of 2024, the income from banking activity was dropped by 8.2% over one year to 57 million euros, according to its half -yearly report.
Drop in customers and adjustments
The number of AXA Banque customers, who reached more than 650,000 in 2018, dropped to 446,000 in 2023, said one of the internal sources.
-“The evolution compared to the year 2018 is linked to the closure of inactive customers account, as part of the KYC measures [de connaissance client, NDLR]”Said Axa France in Reuters, indicating currently counting around 445,000 customers.
Launched in the early 2000s, Axa Banque had strong development ambitions before refocusing its activities on France and at the service of its network of general agents.
The insurer sold Axa Banque Belgique in 2019 to the Crelan banking group and signed in 2020 a partnership with Crédit Mutuel Arkéa to transfer its IT activities and part of its Back Office activities.
“From 2021 to 2023, Axa Banque as the entire sector has operated functional and strategic adjustments in order to integrate environmental constraints in the banking sector (increase in guiding rates, constraint of wear rates, etc.). Of course, these Elements of context penalized the agents installed on this market, “Rémi Gauttier, president of Success, told Reuters, the professional union of the general agents of the AXA group companies.
Despite the difficulties, AXA France always relies on this activity, in particular to support its network of general agents which operates as intermediaries who have received a mandate on behalf of the insurer.
“We believe in the Assurbanque model and deploy a strategy accordingly, in order to continue the development of Axa Banque, based on the distribution networks of AXA France,” the insurer told Reuters.
(Written by Bertrand de Meyer, edited by Blandine Hénault)
Related News :