ABN AMRO issued third-quarter financial results on the same day that it announced it was buying a Dutch bank for €960 million.

ABN AMRO yesterday reported an 11 per cent fall in profit for the three months to end-September this year, standing at €617 million ($715.4 million). The results were affected by a 69 per cent year-on-year rise in impairment charge and declines in some forms of income. Expenses rose.

Separately (with more details below), the Dutch lender announced that it has agreed to buy another Netherlands-based firm, NIBC Bank, from US-listed private markets group Blackstone. ABN AMRO said it expects to pay €960 million for the business.

The group, which engages in activities including private banking, said operating income for the quarter fell 4 per cent; net interest income fell by 4 per cent to €1.58 billion; “other operating income” slumped by 79 per cent to €28 million; and net fee and commission outcome provided some offset with a 17 per cent rise to €561 million, it said in a statement. 

Operating expenses rose 6 per cent to €1.409 billion, ABN AMRO said. 

The results meant that the lender’s cost-income ratio widened to 64.9 per cent from 59.2 per cent in the third quarter of 2024. Return on average equity fell to 9.5 per cent from 11.6 per cent. 

During the reporting period, ABN AMRO completed its purchase of Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe following regulatory approvals, creating a major German wealth management player with more than €70 billion in assets under management, as announced in late June.

“The inclusion of Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe (HAL) as of 1 July contributed positively to our results, adding €26 million to Q3 profits,” Marguerite Bérard, CEO, (pictured below) said. “We are shaping a top three private bank in the German market, and the operational integration is on track. The capital impact of HAL was around -30 bps in Q3, with the CET1 ratio at 14.8 per cent at the end of the quarter, she said. 

Marguerite Bérard

Acquisition 
As mentioned above, ABN AMRO said it has agreed to buy NIBC Bank from Blackstone, adding scale to its retail banking activities and reinforcing its Dutch market position.

NIBC, established in 1945, serves around 325,000 savings clients, 200,000 mortgage clients and 175 corporate clients.

"The acquisition of NIBC represents a unique opportunity to further strengthen our position in the Dutch retail market and contributes to profitable growth. This transaction meets our acquisition criteria and aligns fully with our new strategy,” Bérard said. 

The bank is paying a consideration of 0.85 times book value based on NIBC’s shareholders equity as of the closing date. The estimated transaction price of around €960 million is subject to final adjustments. 

ABN AMRO said the acquisition will boost profitability creating a return on invested capital of around 18 per cent by 2029. The deal will affect its Common Equity Tier 1 ratio, at closing, by about 70 basis points. The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approvals and works consultations at the two banks, is expected to complete in the second half of 2026.

One consequence of the deal is that ABN AMRO has reassessed its mortgage brand strategy, concentrating on its core mortgage labels, ABN AMRO and Florius, and ending its Moneyou brand, it said.