Rabobank net profit down 8 pct; underlying profit stronger

Rabobank released its annual figures for 2014 today. The bank saw a decline in net profit, but its underlying profit improved strongly compared to 2013. Rabobank realized a net profit of 1,842 billion euro last year. That is a 8 percent decrease compared to the 2,007 billion realized in 2013. The decrease in profit was mostly due to fewer windfalls. The fact that all Dutch banks had to pay a resolution levy in connection with the nationalization of SNS Reaal also played a part in the lower profit. That cost the Rabobank 321 million euro. "Given the still difficult economic conditions and the developments in recent years, our results for 2014 are not unsatisfactory." Wiebe Draijer, Chairman of the Executive Board said. "For the future, however, they are still not sufficient. We have improved our underlying result. In 2014 Rabobank again ranked among the world's most sound and stable banks. We passed the stress test by the ECB (European Central Bank, ed) with good results. But we can do better." The bank foresees a positive economic outlook for 2014, but also realizes that it will still be a difficult year for some of its customers.