Financial Results
Summary Of Major Banks' Wealth Results – Q1 2025
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A summary of banks' financial results for the first quarter of 2025, as they relate to wealth management and private banking.
The results focus on the largest institutions which provide wealth management. Not all banks report on a calendar year schedule, or on the same day, and not all the institutions are alike, so the results from standalone institutions should be viewed differently from wealth management results embedded within a larger group. These results may be subsequently revised. We hope readers find it useful to see these figures collated in one article and can make a few comparisons. (Note that currency conversions made at the time into the dollar for non-US banks have been removed, as exchange rates will have changed.)
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JP Morgan
The bank announced a 23 per cent year-on-year rise in net income
at its wealth and asset management arm, reaching $1.583 billion
in the first quarter of 2025. Net revenue rose 12 per cent to
$5.731 billion; noninterest expenses narrowed 82 per cent to $10
million at its wealth and asset management business. Total assets
under management rose 15 per cent reaching $4.1 trillion; total
client assets stood at $6 trillion, also rising 15 per
cent.
Goldman Sachs
Net revenues in asset and wealth management were $3.68 billion
for the first quarter of 2025, 3 per cent lower than the first
quarter of 2024 and 22 per cent down from the fourth quarter of
2024. The decrease compared with the first quarter of 2024
reflected significantly lower net revenues in equity investments
and debt investments, partially offset by higher management and
other fees. The increase in private banking and lending net
revenues primarily reflected higher net interest income from
lending.
Citigroup
The wealth arm, which includes its private banking business,
reported first-quarter earnings in 2025 of $284 million, surging
by 62 per cent on a year ago, aided by a 24 per cent rise in
revenues, while expenses held steady. At the private bank,
revenues rose 16 per cent, year-on-year, to $664 million; at the
Wealth at Work segment, revenues surged 48 per cent to $268
million, and Citigold revenues rose 24 per cent to $1.164
billion. In total, across the whole business, wealth revenues
rose 24 per cent to $2.1 billion in the quarter, and expenses
were broadly flat.
The rise in private bank revenues was mostly caused by higher deposit spreads and higher investment fee revenues, partially offset by lower deposit balances. Client investment assets in the wealth segment stood at $595 billion, rising 16 per cent on the same quarter of 2024.
The cost of credit in the wealth division was $98 million,
compared with a benefit of ($170) million in the prior-year
period, driven by a net ACL (allowances for credit losses) build
related to deterioration in the macroeconomic outlook in the
current quarter, compared with an ACL release in the prior-year
period, and higher net credit losses.
Morgan Stanley
The bank said its first-quarter 2025 net revenues in its wealth
management arm rose to $7.327 billion from $6.88 billion a year
earlier. Wealth management transactional revenues dropped to $873
million from $1.033 billion; net interest revenues inched up to
$1.902 billion from $1.856 billion; asset management revenues
rose to $4.396 billion from $3.829 billion. Total costs rose to
$5.332 billion from $5.082 billion.
Total client assets of $7.7 trillion across wealth and investment
management were supported by net new assets in wealth management
of $94 billion, little changed frm a year earlier. Fee-based
client assets in wealth management stood at $2.349 trillion, up
from $2.124 trillion.
Bank of America
The global wealth and investment arm reported broadly flat net
income for the first quarter of 2025 versus the same period a
year ago. The Q1 2025 net income figure was $1.007
billion.
Total revenue rose to $6.02 billion from $5.59 billion;
noninterest expense expanded to $4.659 billion from $4.264
billion. Total client balances rose to $4.157 trillion, from
$3.973 trillion; asset flows slowed a touch to $24 billion in Q1
2025 from $24.7 billion.
Within Bank of America Private Bank, it had $671 billion in
client balances, and $400 billion in assets under management;
about 280 net new client relationships, with each having at least
$3 million, were added in the first quarter. The Merrill Wealth
side of the business, had $3.5 trillion in client balances and
$1.5 trillion in AuM balances; a total of about 6,400 net new
households were added in the quarter.
BNY
The market and wealth services business segment logged pre-tax
income in the first quarter of 2025 of $816 million, up 20 per
cent on the same period a year earlier. The market and
wealth services business includes the Pershing business, which
provides investment servicing and other services to wealth
managers, family offices, and other financial
institutions. Total revenue stood at $1.686 billion in Q1
2025, rising 11 per cent on a year earlier, BNY. Assets under
custody/administration at the end of March were $14.7 trillion,
rising 12 per cent.
Across the whole of BNY, it had assets under management of $2
trillion, little changed on a year earlier.
Wells Fargo
Net income in the first quarter of 2025 rose to $4.894 billion
from $4.619 billion a year before. There was a decline in
total revenue to $20.149 billion from $20.863 billion.
Within wealth and investment management – a segment that covers
private banking – Wells Fargo said total client assets at March
31 reached $2.232 trillion, up 2 per cent on a year earlier; net
income at the wealth and investment arm rose 3 per cent
year-on-year to $391 million. Noninterest income rose 6 per cent
to $3.048 billion; interest income fell 5 per cent to $826
million.
Northern Trust
The bank reported an 83 per cent year-on-year surge in net income
for the first three months of 2025, reaching $392 million. This
was achieved on the back of an 18 per cent year-on-year rise in
total revenue. However, net income fell from the fourth quarter
of 2024. Noninterest costs rose 4 per cent. Assets under
management stood at $1.607 trillion at the end of March, rising 7
per cent on a year earlier. Within wealth management, AuM rose 6
per cent, to $446.9 billion. Total assets under
custody/administration rose 3 per cent year-on-year to $16.92
trillion.
Royal Bank of Canada
RBC reported net income of C$4.4 billion for the quarter
ended April 30, 2025, up 11 per cent from the prior year. Strong
earnings growth in personal banking, wealth management and
insurance, and higher results in commercial banking, were partly
offset by lower results in capital markets.
Net losses were lower in corporate support, primarily due to the
after-tax impact of specified items related to the HSBC Bank
Canada (HSBC Canada) transaction last year. The inclusion of HSBC
Canada results increased net income by C$258 million.
Wealth management net income of C$929 million increased 11 per
cent from a year ago, mainly due to higher fee-based client
assets reflecting market appreciation and net sales, which also
drove higher variable compensation.
UBS
The bank reported underlying pre-tax operating profit of $1.545
billion at its global wealth management arm in the first quarter
of 2025, rising from $1.272 billion a year earlier. Underlying
total revenues were $6,253 billion in GWM, rising by 6 per cent.
Operating costs rose by $13 million to $5.057 billion, mainly
driven by an increase in financial advisor compensation because
of higher compensable revenues, almost entirely offset by lower
technology costs, risk management costs and real estate
costs. There was also an offsetting impact from a $49
million decline in integration-related expenses (related to the
effect of integrating the acquired Credit Suisse business.)
Julius Baer
The bank reported that it had “continued client momentum” with
net new money inflows of SFr4.2 billion in the first four months
of this year. Assets under management, which stood at SFr467
billion, were down 6 per cent from the end of 2024. This
reflected a stronger Swiss franc exchange rate, and its sale of
Julius Baer Brazil.
Julius Baer said it was on track to achieve SFr110 million in
added cost savings, as announced in February.
Vontobel
The firm said total assets under management rose to SFr235.1
billion at the end of March this year from $229.1 billion at the
end of 2024. It delivered the rising AuM against a “backdrop of
political uncertainty and elevated volatility.” Vontobel’s
trading update set out AuM and inflows figures; it did not set
out figures for metrics such as earnings. The AuM gain equates to
2.6 per cent growth, driven by the IHAG client book acquisition
and market performance (SFr6.0 billion), net inflows (SFr600
million) and foreign exchange effects (-SFr6 million).
Deutsche Bank
Private bank net revenues in the first quarter of 2025, at €2.4
billion, rose 3 per cent year-on-year. Pre-tax profit at the
private bank rose 43 per cent to €490 million. Net commissions
and fee income grew 5 per cent to €832 million, while net
interest income gained 2 per cent to €1.5 billion. Revenues in
its personal banking business dipped by 2 per cent on a year
earlier to €1.3 billion. Growth in investment products and
deposit revenues was more than offset by lower lending
revenues.
Assets under management were €632 billion at the end of the
quarter, as net inflows of €6 billion were offset by €8 billion
in negative impacts from market developments and foreign currency
movements.
ABN AMRO
It reported a first-quarter 2025 net profit of €619 million,
rising 56 per cent on the same quarter of a year earlier. A large
fall in expenses helped the bottom line because operating income
dipped. Operating income fell 4 per cent, to €2.145 billion;
total operating expenses fell 19 per cent year-on-year to €1.309
billion.
Société Générale
In private banking, assets under management rose 6 per cent
versus a year ago, at €130 billion. Net asset inflows totalled €2
billion, with asset gathering (annualised net new money divided
by AuM) standing at 6 per cent. Net banking income came to
€361 million for the quarter, a 3.4 per cent increase at constant
perimeter and exchange rates, falling 3.9 per cent on a year
earlier.
BNP Paribas
Its wealth management arm increased its revenues in the first
quarter of 2025 by 10.7 per cent from a year earlier. At €757
million, pre-tax income rose sharply, up 36.1 per cent on a year
earlier. Assets under management rose from a mix of net asset
inflows – €9.4 billion – notably in Asia and in the commercial
and personal banking field. Transaction fees rose sharply in all
geographies, and deposits held up, particularly in dollars.
HSBC
The international wealth and premier banking arm reported a
pre-tax profit in the first three months of 2026 at $1.188
billion, down a touch from $1.192 billion a year
before.
Revenue rose a touch, to $3.511 billion in the quarter; operating
expenses were little changed in this division of the bank.
Banking net interest income fell 14 per cent year-on-year to
$1.796 billion. Fee and other income, however, rose 24 per cent
on a year ago to $1.819 billion; within that figure, wealth
income was $1.659 billion, a rise of 18 per cent.
Barclays
Barclays Private Bank and Wealth Management reported pre-tax
profit in the first three months of 2025 of £122 million, up 28
per cent from a year earlier. Net interest income rose 17
per cent at this part of the bank to £204 million; net fee,
commission and other income rose by 6 per cent. Operating costs
widened to £234 million from £214 million. On an attributable
basis, profit rose 30 per cent to £96 million. Net new assets
under management were £1 billion in Q1 2025, up from £200 million
a year before; total invested assets stood at £124.4 billion,
from £113.2 billion a year before.
Lloyds Banking Group
The UK bank reported statutory profit after tax of £1.1 billion
in the first three months of 2025, down from a year ago, when it
was £1.2 billion. Rising net income and reduced volatility were
more than offset by higher operating costs and a higher
impairment charge.
Standard Chartered
The lender reported pre-tax profit in the first quarter of 2025
of $2.103 billion, rising 10 per cent year-on-year, while profit
attributable to shareholders rose 13 per cent to $1.592 billion.
Operating income rose 5 per cent on a year earlier, at $5.379
billion; operating costs gained 2 per cent, reaching $3.046
billion. Credit impairments widened 32 per cent to $217 million.
The cost/income ratio narrowed to 56.6 per cent from 58.4 per
cent. The net interest margin rose. In the wealth solutions
segment, Standard Chartered said operating income rose 26 per
cent year-on-year in Q1 2025 to $777 million, or up 28 per cent
on a constant-currency basis. The growth was driven by
double-digit growth in investment products and bancassurance,
with broad-based growth across markets and products.
NatWest and Coutts
Coutts, the private banking arm of UK-listed NatWest Group, today
reported £77 million in operating profit for the first quarter of
2025, more than double the £33 million result a year ago. The
result was driven by a rise in total income to £265 million from
£208 million, more than offsetting a slight rise in expenses.
The bank logged flows of assets under management/administration
(AuMA) of £800 million in the quarter, down from £1 billion in
the preceding quarter to end-December 2024, but up from £200
million a year earlier.
Total assets under management stood at £36.7 billion at the end
of March, up from £33.6 billion at end-March 2024. AuMA stood at
a total of £48.5 billion, up from £43.1 billion.
DBS
It logged a record S$3.44 billion first-quarter profit for 2025,
rising slightly on a year earlier.
The bank took general allowances of S$205 million to bolster
reserves given macroeconomic turmoil. Net profit fell 2 per cent
at S$42.90 billion, caused by higher tax costs as a result of the
impact of a new global minimum income tax of 15 per
cent. Total income rose 6 per cent to S$45.91 billion from
balance sheet growth, record fee income and treasury customer
sales were driven by wealth management, as well as the strongest
markets trading income in 12 quarters.
OCBC
The group’s wealth management income, comprising income from
private banking, premier private client, premier banking,
insurance, asset management and stockbroking, was S$1.37 billion,
6 per cent higher than the previous quarter, and contributed 38
per cent to the group’s total income. The bank's wealth
management AuM was S$306 billion, up 2 per cent from S$299
billion at the end of 2024.
UOB
It reported S$1.5 billion in net profit for the first quarter of
2025, stable year-on-year, supported by broad-based growth,
including record fee income and robust loan growth.
The group’s first quarter performance was supported by its
diversified growth drivers across the wholesale banking and
retail businesses, the bank said in a statement. Net fee income
rose 20 per cent year-on-year to a high of S$694 million, driven
by growth in loan-related and wealth management fees. Net
interest income increased by 2 per cent from the previous year,
led by robust loan growth of 6 per cent. Other non-interest
income eased 5 per cent year-on-year from lower trading and
investment income, but grew 25 per cent from the previous
quarter, due to strong customer treasury income and good
performance from trading and liquidity management activities.