UK-listed Lloyds Banking Group said today its wealth arm's pre-tax profit last year rose to £269 million (around $434 million) from £198 million a year before, while pre-tax profits for the entire banking group improved.

The banking group is 41 per cent owned by the UK taxpayer, having been bailed out with public funds in the wake of the 2008 financial panic.

The wealth arm is part of the Wealth and International division of the banking group, embracing overseas banking operations, some of which have been hit by exposure to woes in markets such as those of Ireland. The W&I division logged a loss before tax of £4.824 billion compared to £2.356 billion in 2009.

Wealth & International income was £2.336 billion, down slightly from £2.345 billion a year before. This division logged total impairment charges last year of £5.988 billion, wider than the £4.078 billion figure in 2009. The level of losses continues to be dominated by the economic environment in Ireland, and to a lesser extent has also been influenced by the performance of specific areas of the Australian economy, the bank said.

Customer deposits increased by £3.8 billion, or 13 per cent, to £32.8 billion, due to strong inflows in UK Private Banking and Bank of Scotland Germany, partly offset by outflows in Ireland following the closure of the Irish retail branch network.

For Lloyds Banking Group as a whole, it recorded a £320 million loss attributable to shareholders on a statutory basis in 2010. On a combined business basis, the group made a pre-tax profit of £2.2 billion, overturning a £6.3 billion loss in 2009.

The group had a 10.2 per cent core Tier 1 capital ratio at the end of 2010, compared with 8.1 per cent a year before.