By Maya Nikolaeva

PARIS, Oct 7 (Reuters) – Frederic Oudea promised Societe Generale investors “growth with lower risk” after he became chief executive in 2008, the year a rogue trader lost billions in equity derivatives and brought the French bank close to collapse.

Fast forward a decade and SocGen’s share price is at a record low and the bank’s market capitalisation 78% lower than where it was when Oudea took over, after losses on complex investment products wiped out equity trading revenue in the first and second quarters of 2020.

“The current valuation of SocGen makes no sense,” Oudea, whose term expires in 2023, told Reuters.

The bank’s share price, which closed up 6.7% at 12.2 euros on Tuesday, gives it a market capitalisation of about 10 billion euros ($11.8 billion), around a quarter of that of rival BNP Paribas BNPP.PA and half that of Credit Agricole CAGR.PA.