UBS posts best profits since before financial crisis at £5.6bn

Swiss lender UBS has registered its best profits since before the financial crisis.

The bank, which specialises in managing the money of the world’s richest, booked a $7.5bn (£5.6bn) for the whole of 2022, its best take since 2006, it announced today.

UBS’s global wealth management was the bank’s bright spot, generating $563m (£419m) in profits before tax for the final three months of last year.

Markets had been pencilling in around $£7bn (£5.2bn) of profits for the whole of 2021, signalling the scale of UBS’ strong performance last year.

Investment banking profits came in at over $700m for the final quarter of last year.

UBS’ investment bank’s strong performance reflects a booming deal making environment last year, driven by investors taking advantage of ultra-low interest rates and private equity firms deploying a wave of dry powder amassed before the pandemic.

UBS’ bumper year led it to put forward a $0.50 (£0.37) dividend.

Ralph Hamers, chief executive of UBS, said: “We continued to implement our strategy and build our global ecosystem. And we’ll carry that momentum forward as we deliver on our strategic plans and ambitious new targets.”