BOURSORAMA 
By Regulatory News:
Boursorama (Paris:BRS):
Results confirm the strength of the business model and the resilience of profitability
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Net banking income: €100.8 million (+5%)
- New accounts: 68,497 (x2.6 in France, up 49% overall)
- Fixed costs: €53.3 million (+0.5%)
- Marketing costs: €17.1 million (x 2.5)
- Gross operating income: €28.0 million (-16%)
- Net income attributable to the shareholders: €17.9 million (-24%)
- Total balance sheet: €3,4 billion
- Equity: €676 billion
Continued strong improvement in key indicators
- Banking: very strong growth in new accounts openings
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Brokerage: good business levels, supported by an exceptional May
- 3.2 million trades, 7% higher than in H1 2009
- Savings: 31% increase in assets under management (life insurance, mutual funds and savings accounts)
Positive trends continue in international markets
- Strong growth in all business indicators in Germany, the UK and Spain
- The persistent unfavourable interest rate environment is still affecting interest margin
Strong investment in the Boursorama Banque brand in France, as part of the 2015 business plan
- Success of the advertising campaign around the new brand platform: ?la banque en ligne avec son époque?*
- 2015 targets: 500,000 sight accounts, 700,000 clients, €10bn in assets under management
?The first half of 2010 confirmed the solidity and strength of Boursorama's business model, which is unique both in France and in our international markets, where our efforts are beginning to bear fruit,? noted Hugues Le Bret, Chairman and CEO of Boursorama. ?Client recruitment and business level indicators rose strongly, with new records for new accounts, order volumes and strong growth in savings; these developments took place in an interest rate environment that remains unfavourable and against a background of mixed trends in the equity markets. Tight control of fixed costs combined with the density of our development strategy enables the Group to post solid results. Building on our renewed brand platform, ?la banque en ligne avec son époque', Boursorama Banque is pursuing a strategy aimed at leveraging a unique banking business model and exploiting the potential of a pioneering on-line brand. Capitalising on these strengths and on its investment in marketing, the Group has set itself ambitious targets for 2015 in France: 500,000 sight accounts, 700,000 clients and €10bn in assets under management.?
- Boursorama: a relevant and solid business model
Over the first half of 2010 the main European equity market indices fell (CAC40: -13%, DAX: -1%, FTSE: -11%) against a background of high volatility. Interest rates remained low.
In this still delicate environment, the Boursorama group benefited from the strength of its brand, the quality of its commercial offering and the solidity of its business model, maintaining growth and profitability.
Thanks to its portfolio of complementary businesses, the Group generated a 5% increase in its Net Banking Income compared to the first half of 2009, taking it to €100.8 million for the first half of 2010. For the second quarter in a row, interest margin increased, thanks to a rise in deposits. At €28.0 million, Gross Operating Income was 16% lower due to an additional €10.3 million in marketing costs over the first half. Excluding marketing, overhead remained flat at €53.3 million, reflecting strict control of costs.
Net income attributable to the shareholders was €17.9 million in the first half of 2010, from €23.7 million in the first half of 2009*.
First half results thus demonstrate the relevance of the Group's strategy of winning new market share and the particular attention paid to operational efficiency.
- Business performance: continued strong growth in key indicators
- Brokerage: benefiting from volatility and a record number of new accounts
Driven by particularly volatile markets, the number of brokerage transactions rose by 7% compared to the first half of 2009 and reached a new record level of 3.2 million orders for the first half of the year.
With 26,340 new brokerage accounts opened over the first half, the total number of accounts is now 402,826.
Brokerage operating income was €67.1 million and accounted for 54% of total revenues.
- Banking: accelerating growth in market share
With a total of 33,531 new accounts opened in the first half of 2010 (3,689 of them in Spain), Boursorama increased its rate of new account opening by a factor of 2.6 compared to the first half of 2009, thus demonstrating its ability to become a real European benchmark in on-line banking. The total number of bank accounts stood at 137,442 at the end of the first half of 2010, a 55% increase on the first half of 2009.
Marketing investment in France came to a total of €12.9 million in the first half of 2010. It will be limited to €11 million in the second half of 2010 in accordance with the initial plan.
Boursorama Banque confirmed the targeted expansion of mortgage lending, with 1,478 applications approved over the first half (a year-on-year increase of 37%), for a total loan value of €1.36 billion.
Banking operating income was €37.8 million in the first half of 2010, of which €32.8 million from interest income, and represented 30% of total revenues.
* In 2009, Boursorama Banque recorded a dilution profit on the creation of SelfBank in Spain of €14 million, and impairment of goodwill relating to the acquisition of OnVista AG of €11 million.
- Savings: strong growth in assets under management and in the number of accounts
During the first half of 2010, 7,656 savings accounts (excluding ?Livret? savings accounts) were opened in France, taking the total number to 110,427 at end-June, from 96,053 a year earlier. At the Group level, the number of savings accounts rose 15% to 118,044 by end-June 2010.
- Life insurance: Boursorama saw a 25% increase in assets under management, to €2.09 billion at end-March, a rate of growth three times that for the market as a whole (FFSA, up 8%).
- Mutual funds: at end-June total assets under management in mutual funds stood at €1.38 billion, from €1.20 billion a year earlier, an increase of 15%.
- Savings accounts: despite a markedly less favourable interest rate environment, savings deposits rose by 51% on one year earlier figure, to €685 million at end-June 2010.
Total assets under management in the savings business (including ?Livret? savings accounts) rose 25% to €4,161 million.
Savings operating income was €8.8 million in the first half of 2010 and accounted for 7% of total revenues.
- Media: Boursorama outperforming the on-line advertising market
The Boursorama group owns the two leading financial information sites in France and Germany, with www.boursorama.com and www.onvista.de respectively.
Despite continued tough conditions in the advertising market in the first half of 2010, Boursorama.com in France saw a 10% increase in revenues, thus outperforming the 8%* growth in the overall French advertising market. The Boursorama Group thus benefited from an upturn in activity amongst financial advertisers and was able to build on the power of its two portals, www.boursorama.com and www.onvista.de, in terms of quality, the complementary nature of products and services and audience.
The Group's advertising revenues grew by 13% to €9.5 million and represented 8% of total revenues.
* source ZenithOptimedia, 19 July 2010
- Confirmation of strategic priorities and 2015 targets
At the Group level, the strategic priorities for the year remain the continued pursuit of a balance between growth and profitability. The Group will continue to step up the pace of expansion in on-line banking in France and seek to make further gains in market share in the rest of Europe. The Group will also remain particularly attentive to its established policy of operational efficiency, and will be especially watchful regarding the control of fixed costs.
In France, the Group is pursuing an aggressive commercial strategy that takes account of the fact that more widespread use of on-line services and the growing sensitivity of banking customers to bank charges has created a real momentum behind the expansion of the on-line banking market.
Boursorama has announced its commercial targets for the French market in 2015: 500,000 sight accounts, 700,000 clients, €10bn in assets under management. These targets are based on favourable conditions for the expansion of the on-line banking market in France. This ambitious strategy of gaining market share is beginning to bear fruit as shown by the success of the new advertising campaign based on the renewed brand platform ?la banque en ligne avec son époque' (?the bank on line with its times').
In international markets Boursorama will pursue its measured expansion within the framework of a clear strategy. Business indicators – particularly new accounts?are rising in Spain, Germany and the UK.
The Group expects to continue to win new customers, in particular thanks to:
o in Germany, where all the indicators are positive, an increased contribution from the onvista.de portal to the development of market share;
o in the UK, further growth in assets under management, optimisation of the customer base and increased control over fixed costs;
o in Spain, where results have been encouraging despite the still difficult conditions, the development of an on-line bank in partnership with la Caixa.
About Boursorama
Founded in 1995, Boursorama is a major player in on-line savings in Europe and is part of the Société Générale Group, with more than 3.2 million orders executed in the first half of 2010, 658,312 direct accounts and total assets under management of €13.1 billion at end June 2010. Boursorama Group is present in four countries. In France, it is market leader in on-line financial information with the www.boursorama.com portal and a key player in on-line banking under the Boursorama Banque brand. It is a key on-line broker in the United Kingdom and Spain under the respective brands of Self Trade and Self Trade Bank. In Germany, Boursorama holds 92.9% of the shares of OnVista AG, and is present under the brand OnVista Bank. Boursorama is listed on Eurolist by Euronext Paris - compartment B - ISIN: FR0000075228 (BRS) – Reuters: FMTX.LN – Bloomberg BRS FP. For all the latest financial news on Boursorama, go to: http://Groupe.boursorama.fr
Comparison of half-year consolidated financial statements* | ||||||||||||||||||||
| (in € millions) | H1 2009 | H1 2010 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Group | France | Germany | UK | Spain | Group | France | Germany | UK | Spain | |||||||||||
| Operating income | 114.8 | 91.1 | 7.6 | 13.0 | 3.1 | 123.8 | 99.3 | 9.0 | 12.1 | 3.4 | ||||||||||
| Order processing costs | -17.3 | -12.4 | -1.3 | -2.9 | -0.7 | -18.4 | -13.2 | -1.8 | -2.9 | -0.6 | ||||||||||
| Other banking operating expenses | -1.9 | -1.9 | -0.1 | 0.0 | 0.1 | -4.5 | -4.2 | -0.5 | 0.0 | 0.1 | ||||||||||
| Net banking income | 95.7 | 76.7 | 6.2 | 10.2 | 2.6 | 100.8 | 81.9 | 6.7 | 9.3 | 3.0 | ||||||||||
| General operating expenses (excluding marketing) | -53.0 | -36.1 | -7.7 | -6.1 | -3.2 | -53.3 | -36.4 | -6.9 | -6.7 | -3.3 | ||||||||||
| Marketing costs | -6.8 | -4.5 | -0.4 | -1.1 | -0.9 | -17.1 | -12.9 | -0.7 | -1.4 | -2.2 | ||||||||||
| Depreciation and amortisation | -2.5 | -1.8 | -0.4 | -0.1 | -0.2 | -2.4 | -1.1 | -0.6 | -0.1 | -0.7 | ||||||||||
| Total operating expense | -62.4 | -42.4 | -8.5 | -7.2 | -4.3 | -72.8 | -50.3 | -8.1 | -8.2 | -6.2 | ||||||||||
| Gross operating income | 33.2 | 34.3 | -2.3 | 2.9 | -1.7 | 28.0 | 31.5 | -1.4 | 1.1 | -3.2 | ||||||||||
| Risk costs | -1.0 | -1.2 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -1.5 | -1.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -0.1 | ||||||||||
| Gains and losses on fixed assets | 3.2 | 0.2 | -11.0 | 0.0 | 14.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | ||||||||||
| Profit before tax | 35.5 | 33.4 | -13.2 | 2.9 | 12.3 | 26.5 | 30.1 | -1.4 | 1.1 | -3.3 | ||||||||||
| Tax | -12.5 | -11.5 | -0.1 | -0.9 | 0.0 | -10.3 | -10.6 | 0.5 | -0.2 | 0.0 | ||||||||||
| Net income | 23.0 | 21.9 | -13.3 | 2.0 | 12.3 | 16.3 | 19.6 | -0.9 | 0.9 | -3.3 | ||||||||||
| Net income attributable to equity holders of the parent | 23.7 | 21.9 | -13.3 | 2.0 | 13.1 | 17.9 | 19.6 | -0.9 | 0.9 | -1.7 | ||||||||||
