We Assign BNP Paribas a Standard Capital Allocation Rating

We assess BNP Paribas’ capital allocation as Standard. BNP has been one of the few European banks not to suffer the ignominy of accepting a government bailout, nor did it have to make a dilutive capital call. BNP does however, have one of the weaker balance sheets of the European banks we cover. We would prefer a more focused geographical strategy, but we are supportive of BNP's countercyclical push into investment banking. We believe BNP’s shareholder distribution policy is appropriate. We maintain our no moat rating and EUR 63/share fair value estimate.