Capital One 2009 Annual Report Download - page 4

segment’s profitability took a hit in 2009, primarily due to increased allowance and charge-offs
in our commercial book as the recession began to have a serious impact on commercial assets.
Nonetheless, our commercial business continued to outperform our peers’ in credit quality due
to our favorable footprint in resilient markets, our lower exposure to construction loans, and our
consistently conservative underwriting. Commercial assets constitute a smaller part of Capital One’s
balance sheet, so we remain less exposed to the commercial downturn than most banks. We increased
deposits by over $7 billion, including the Chevy Chase Bank acquisition. And we remained disciplined
with respect to deposit pricing, which continued to drive down funding costs.
We aggressively worked off mortgages and nationally originated installment loans, increasing capital
ratios and reducing risk. We continued to build out our in-footprint mortgage originations and
servicing capabilities, and we continued to provide installment loans to our local banking customers.
Our international businesses modestly improved, with continuing strength in our Canadian business
and stabilizing credit in the UK.
We made additional progress in attacking costs, driving efficiency, and substantially reducing
run-rate operating expenses. We made significant investments in our banking infrastructure and
our customer experience, with solid progress on building additional flexibility to deliver even
better products and service.
We recruited capable, experienced banking talent from big players across the industry. And we
gained more recognition as a great place for the very best talent
to work. In 2009, we were included on Fortune’s list of the
“Top 25 Companies for Leaders” in North America, and we
were cited as a top employer by DiversityInc, Working Mother,
PINK, and the Human Rights Campaign.
Our customers need great value and convenience now
more than ever. Capital One remains committed to
delivering both. Our No Hassle Rewards Card continues
to deliver premium rewards and benefits, while Image
Card allows our customers to personalize their cards
with their own photos by uploading a favorite image.
Our No Hassle Giving Site enables our card customers
to donate with confidence to any of 1.2 million charities,
and Capital One covers the transaction fees.
We have also made big strides on credit card customer
service. We continued to improve our online banking experience, making it even easier and more
convenient. Our credit card customers rewarded our efforts by sticking with us. Our attrition
Image Card is powered by an online tool that lets
customers design their own cards. By uploading
their own photographs, they’re creating cards
as unique as they are.
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