Belgian bank KBC’s private banking business saw a 28 per cent rise year-on-year in net profit during the first nine months of 2005 to €133 m...

Belgian bank KBC’s private banking business saw a 28 per cent rise year-on-year in net profit during the first nine months of 2005 to €133 million ($156.5 million). However, compared with the previous quarter, third quarter net profit fell by 4 per cent. KBC’s European private banking business, which comprises a large number of separately branded banks around many European countries, reported a healthy rise in assets under management. AUMs went up during the first nine months of this year by 20 per cent to €60 billion (€52 billion of this amount is being managed for private banking clients). Total AUMs, which include KBC’s insurance business, rose 22 per cent since the start of the year to €102 billion. Around 60 per cent of this is due to net new money flows, according to KBC. KBC’s chief financial officer Herman Agneessens said that the bank has around €3 billion available for acquisitions. He said the bank has been looking for acquisitions to boost its private banking operations.