The second biggest German bank, Commerzbank, has marked a rebound from heavy losses suffered during the global economic crisis as it posted a solid 2010 profit and pledged to start paying back state aid.
Commerzbank said it made a net profit of €1.43 billion last year, compared with a loss of €4.5 billion in 2009.
In the fourth quarter of 2010, the partially state-owned bank recorded a net profit of €257m, turning around a loss of €1.9 billion in the same period a year earlier.
'2010 was a successful year for Commerzbank in many respects,' chairman Martin Blessing said, adding that the group had returned to profitability one year earlier than forecast.
The German government took a silent stake of 25% in the bank as it granted public aid of more than €18 billion to Commerzbank, including €16.2 billion via a market stabilisation fund known as SoFFin. Blessing said today that 'we want to reduce the silent participations of SoFFin significantly already in 2011'.
The bank could not do so last year because it showed a net loss of €1.2 billion as a result of problems at its property unit Eurohypo.
Commerzbank's 2010 operating profit climbed to €1.4 billion from a loss of €2.3 billion in 2009, while provisions taken against possible loan defaults fell by 40% to just under €2.5 billion.
