CGD - A Group Committed to Innovation

Caixa Geral de Depósitos (CGD) has been widely acknowledged as Portugal's leading banking institution for 130 years.

Today, CGD is a modern financial-services group coping with new challenges in the form of domestic and overseas competition, as well as with the emergence of global markets and new ways of doing business. CGD is a state-owned institution, and the only bank in Portugal with this type of shareholder structure.

Notwithstanding that, its main corporate mission is to maximize shareholder value and, no less importantly, sustain a leading role in promoting growth and fostering innovation in the domestic market.

That mission requires several strategic aspects to be achieved, such as:

• Making continuous improvements to its core retail banking business, as the bank preferred by 5 million customers.
• Providing quality of service and customizing operations to customer needs by providing tailor-made products and services.
• Enhancing penetration, targeting sectors with growth and profit potential.
• Maintaining the highest professional and ethical standards in the running of its business.

A great deal of progress has been made over the past few years in meeting these targets.

CGD is the largest Portuguese financial group, with the highest domestic market shares in key areas such as customer deposits (30.2% at the end of 2005), loans and advances to customers (22,1%), mortgages (33,5%), insurance (22.3%), mutual funds (19,3%), and real estate leasing (11.4%).

CGD has been engaged in committing substantial human and financial resources to innovative technological initiatives. It has also focused on the implementation of a new strategic cycle, dominated by such pioneering initiatives as electronic distribution channels, Caixa Directa on-line (Internet banking), Caixa e-Banking (corporate Internet banking), CaixaNet (IT infrastructure), CaixaWeb (CGD Group's "dot.com"company) and Bolsa Caixa Imobiliário (an e-business specialized in real estate and home loans).

In addition, automation has been increased and convenience-banking networks expanded, involving agreements with postal services, gas stations, railway stations, universties and public services.

International Ranking

International recognition of CGD is reflected in its world ranking.
Assets-wise, it ranks 109th in terms of the world’s major banks. In
Europe, it ranks 69th in terms of European largest banks. *

* - The Banker Magazine “Top 1,000 World Banks” – July 2005

CGD also plays a leading role in the bond markets (both public and private sector), as well as in the money market as a supplier of interbank liquidity.

CGD is also the only Portuguese bank on the EURIBOR panel.

International Rating

Standard & Poor’s issued Caixa Geral de Depósitos with an "A+" in long-term rating. This is the highest rating ever attributed to a Portuguese bank by this international agency. The short-term rating was "A-1".

In announcing this new rating, S&P stressed CGD's leading position in the banking sector in Portugal, with a major presence in retail banking, especially mortgage lending.

Directly or through a large number of subsidiaries, the CGD Group offers a full spectrum of financial products and services, developing a "cross-selling" concept that allows every customer to use its services at any geographical point where the bank is represented.

International Reach

CGD Group has 9 bank branches – New York, London, France, Luxembourg, Zhuhai (People’s Republic of China), East Timor, Grand Cayman and Monaco. It also has 7 subsidiaries – Banco Caixa Geral (Spain), Banco Comercial e de Investimentos (Mozambique), Banco Comercial do Atlântico (Cape Verde), Banco Interatlântico (Cape Verde), Banco Nacional Ultramarino (Macao), Mercantile Bank (South Africa) and the Caixa Geral de Depósitos Macao Offshore Branch. CGD’s branch office network operates with resident Portuguese communities, providing support to the operations of Portuguese companies abroad.

CGD Group has Representative Offices in Belgium (Brussels), Germany (Berlin), Switzerland (Geneve), Brazil (São Paulo and Salvador), Mexico (Mexico City), Venezuela (Caracas) and India (Mumbai).

The CGD Group has particularly endeavoured to demonstrate to its most important partners operating in the Eurozone that it is the best option for domestic market operations.