Société Générale sets a higher profitability target for 2029

Société Générale has raised its profitability ambitions in a strategic plan covering 2026 to 2029. Reuters reported on Monday, 21 September, that the French bank is targeting return on tangible equity of 13% to 14% by 2029 and more than 15% from 2030. The targets describe management’s plan, not profits already achieved.

The group also wants annual revenue growth of about 3%, a cost-to-income ratio below 55% and costs below €16.3 billion in 2029. Reuters says that cost figure would be about 2% lower than in 2026. The plan relies on productivity measures, procurement, natural staff attrition and wider use of automation and artificial intelligence.

Automation sits inside a broader cost plan

Financial News separately reports that the corporate and investment bank is expected to increase revenue while bringing its cost-to-income ratio down. It says management presented technology and automation as important levers. Natural attrition means positions may disappear when people leave, but it is not a disclosed figure for compulsory redundancies.

Capital returns are another central promise. The Wall Street Journal reports that Société Générale expects around €13 billion of ordinary shareholder distributions through 2029, with up to €8 billion more possible from capital above its target range. A potential distribution is conditional on profits, capital, regulation and board decisions; it is not cash already committed to investors.

A roadmap must still become quarterly results

The presentation follows a period in which the bank has been trying to simplify operations and strengthen capital. In its second-quarter release on 30 July, Société Générale said it would unveil a new roadmap at the 21 September capital markets day. That earlier primary document is useful for chronology, while the new reporting contains the plan’s updated targets.

For employees and clients, the important question is how the cost programme will be delivered. Automation can shorten processing and change how work is organised, but a strategy headline does not show which activities will be redesigned or what service levels will result. More detailed implementation milestones will be needed to judge that part of the plan.

For investors, the next evidence will come from quarterly revenue, expenses, capital and profitability rather than the 2029 endpoint alone. A multi-year target can guide expectations, but economic conditions and market activity can alter the path. The plan is significant because it states a measurable destination and the resources management expects to use to reach it.

Written for WHIF from the linked material. This article does not claim on-the-ground reporting. Our editorial standards.