All four components of Germany’s Berenberg Bank – private banking, asset management, corporate and investment banking – made positive contributions to earnings in 2011, the German bank said in its annual report.

The bank, one of the oldest in the world, made a net profit of €56.1 million ($72.6 million) last year, down slightly from €61.5 million in 2010. Berenberg’s income ratio changed from 74.2 per cent to 75.9 per cent, and assets under management rose by €500 million to €26 billion.

One highlight at the venerable banking group in 2011 was the opening of a new subsidiary in Boston, US, where the bank previously had an office between 1828 and 1902.

The bank also launched a subsidiary called Berenberg Art Advice for consulting, dealings and investment in art. Together with an advisory board comprising collectors and museum directors, the unit hopes to offer expertise in the full spectrum of art, from classical to contemporary.

Berenberg said in its annual report that real estate investment proved to be important in 2011 because of volatile and uncertain stock markets. Through Berenberg Privat Capital, the bank offers direct investment in property.

The bank, which can trace its origins to the sixteenth century, has private banking offices in Germany, the UK, Austria and Switzerland and employs 1,100 staff.

Meanwhile, some of Germany’s largest banks have recently reported their financial results for the opening quarter of the year. Last week, the private customers segment at Commerzbank posted an operating profit of €112 million for the three months to 31 March, in line with last year’s level of €116 million. At the end of April, Deutsche Bank, the country's biggest bank, said that net revenues at its private clients and asset management arm fell to €3.4 billion in the first three months of this year, compared with €4.1 billion a year before.