BNP Paribas

Director of football: Baudouin Prot
Age: 54
Appointed: 2003
Value added: 23.6% pa (7th)
Chop rating: 3/5

Prot is keenly aware of the challenges brought by the globalization of the game. Determined not to make expensive signings, but will this lead to pressure from supporters?

Head coache: Jacques d’Estais (47, 2005)

Star players: Yann Gérardin is the man behind BNP Paribas’ leading equity derivatives franchise, and many thought he was in with a chance of a top job before d’Estais got the call

Rising star: Fred Janbon – the former head of derivatives is now running the fixed-income franchise and is widely admired as a smart operator. Can he get his division purring like it should be?

Weakest link: Always seems to be late to alter tactics when the playing conditions have changed. Internal structure seems convoluted, and rumours persist of tensions between different factions. Despite the head start has not kept the distance over its domestic rival, Société Générale

Key transfers 2006:

IN: Adrian Docherty (global head of financial institutions for advisory within fixed income, from Barclays Capital); Olivier Vigneron (global head of structured credit risk management, from Deutsche Bank)

OUT: Stéphane Rougier (global head of structured and index investments, to Lehman Brothers); Michael Finkelman (managing director in the leveraged finance group, to Société Générale)

2006 capital markets performance (▼/▲ 2005)

Overall fees: $893mln (+21.6%) 14th (▼2)
DCM: $459.1mln (+13.6%) 15th (▼1)
ECM: $155.4mln (+16.1%) 12th (▲1)
M&A:$278.2mln (+41.7%) 12th (no move)
FX market share: 1.1% (+0.01%) 14th (no move)

Rankings 2006:

Return on equity: 21.2% (8th)
Growth of earnings: 23.7% (10th)
Market cap: $101.4bln (6th)

Champions League position 2006: 12th
If BNP Paribas were a Champions League team it would be: Valencia. Occasionally you think they could go all the way – but not quite the talent and spending power to match the superpowers of the game