French bank BNP Paribas said net profits in the second-quarter were flat as lower provisions set against bad loans and a gain on the sale of its shares in Visa Europe helped make up for a sharp decline in equity trading.

The Paris-based lender, France's largest listed bank by assets, said net profits rose 0.2% to €2.56 billion ($2.82 billion) in the three months to June 30 while revenues grew by 2% to €11.32 billion.