Total wealth management revenues for the last quarter were C$187 million, compared to C$203 million for the same quarter of 2008. This decrease, the bank said, was due to lower transaction volumes, narrower spread on deposits, and the fact that assets under management and administration remained lower than in the same period of 2008.

Operating expenses for the wealth management division were reported to have fallen by C$6 million to stand at C$149 million for the quarter ended 31 July 2009, mainly due to a decrease in variable compensation.

As a whole the bank posted a net income of $303 million for the quarter ending 31 July 2009, up 6 per cent from C$286 million for the same period of 2008.

At 31 July 2009, National Bank of Canada’s Tier 1 capital ratio was 10.5 per cent, compared to 9.4 per cent at the end of October 2008.