An 86% fall in profits from equities and corporate finance at Société Générale in the second quarter of the year has raised questions about the French bank's future capacity in investment banking.

Earnings from the equities and advisory business dropped to just €28m ($24.8m) in the second quarter from over €205m last year. Profits in equities fell over 80% from the first quarter, which had been boosted by big deals such as the IPO of Orange and a secondary sales of shares for Alstom.