Financial Results
Switzerland's BCV Reports Rise In Profits; Wealth AuM Rises

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise, the Swiss bank, has reported a year-on-year rise in operating profit, standing at SFr503 million ($661.2 million), with results in line with trends seen during recent quarters.
Banque
Cantonale Vaudoise, the Swiss bank, has reported a
year-on-year rise in operating profit, standing at SFr503 million
($661.2 million), with results in line with trends seen during
recent quarters.
Net profit, at SFr154 million, rose 2 per cent from the same
six-month period a year ago, it said in a statement
yesterday.
Commenting on wealth management, the bank said although buoyant
trends in financial markets pushed up assets under management by
3.5 per cent to SFr67.7 billion, transaction volumes were mostly
down compared to the first half of 2013. However, the volume of
mortgage loans continued to grow in a slowing real estate market,
reaching SFr6.7 billion (+1.5 per cent). Net new money remained
positive, with inflows of onshore funds outweighing outflows of
offshore assets.
Overall, revenues remained stable at SFr188 million (–0.2 per
cent), and operating profit edged up 0.5 per cent to SFr108
million.
“In May, we distributed SFr275 million, or SFr32 per share, to
shareholders. This reflects our confidence in our strategic
choices and our ability to deliver profitable growth, as well as
the bank’s high capital ratio,” Olivier Steimer, chairman, and
Pascal Kiener, chief executive, said in the statement.
“Since 2007, BCV has paid its shareholders – starting with our
majority shareholder, the Canton of Vaud – a total of over SFr2
billion, which represents almost 87 per cent of cumulative net
earnings. This gives BCV one of the highest payout ratios of any
Swiss company,” they said.
“The Vaud economy has stayed firmly upbeat, in contrast to the
mixed situation elsewhere in Europe. GDP in Vaud is set to grow
by 2.8 per cent this year and 3 per cent in 2015, according to
the latest CREA Institute estimates. The overall trend thus
remains positive, even though the Canton still has to deal with a
number of issues; these include corporate tax reforms and
implementation of the initiative 'against mass immigration' that
was adopted in a nationwide referendum on 9 February, the
statement said.