In this paper an attempt is made to calculate the profit rate of the banking sector, in order to compare it with that of other real productive sectors. Various techniques are used, highlighting the differences and commonalities among the results. The study suggests the use of a new methodology for calculating the banking and financial profit rate, based on central bank data.Furthermore, this study confirms some weakness in bank profitability in recent years, less visible using national accounts data. Furthermore, the evidence suggests the validation of certain insights from Marx's Book III of Capital.