The lender is the latest to benefit from soaring demand from clients wanting to trade in global markets.

Credit Agricole, France’s second-biggest listed bank, blew past quarterly earnings forecasts with a 27 per cent jump in profit, driven by insurance and asset management even as gains in its investment banking business lagged rivals.

The lender is the latest to benefit from soaring demand from clients wanting to trade in global markets, particularly in the final three months of 2024.

Credit Agricole said net income for the three months ending in December rose 27 per cent from a year earlier to 1.7 billion euros, beating the 1.3 billion-euro analyst average estimate it had compiled.

Revenue came in at 7.1 billion euros, up 17 per cent, also above an average forecast of 6.5 billion euros.

The strong fourth quarter enabled Credit Agricole to report record full-year sales and net income, the latter totalling more than 7.1 billion euros.

The group’s asset management arm, Amundi, Europe’s largest fund manager, saw sales grow by 14.5 per cent year on year.

Credit Agricole’s investment banking unit saw sales increase 7.7 per cent to a record 1.57 billion euros, a smaller rise than elsewhere.

Sales from trading in fixed income, currencies and commodities, while rising 17 per cent, underperformed BNP and below the average 26 per cent year-on-year increase recorded by Wall Street firms, according to Jefferies.

The listed entity of the larger Credit Agricole Group, composed of 39 regional banks, said its insurance business saw sales surge by 37 per cent, notably thanks to growth in assets under management.