Banque Cantonale Vaudoise said its net profit for 2008 was SFr358 million ($310 million), a fall of 25 per cent on the previous year.

Group assets under management fell by 21 per cent to SFr66.8 billion due to the downturn in stockmarkets and business disposals, BCV said in a statement.

The inflow of SFr1.7 billion in new funds from private banking clients and local small businesses during the period was partially offset by an intentional reduction of approximately SFr1.3 billion in funds held mainly in time deposits for large firms and trade finance clients as part of a strategy to limit bank-counterparty risk exposure. As a result, net new funds for the period amounted to SFr354 million.

Pascal Kiener, who became the bank’s chief executive in May last year, said last November that BCV intends to win market share through four customer-oriented front-line divisions as well as a division devoted solely to credit decisions.

The board of directors made a number of senior appointments last year, including that of Gérard Haeberli as head of the new Private Banking Division. Mr Haeberli, who is currently in charge of French-speaking Switzerland for Credit Suisse, will join the Bank on 1 July 2009.

The new head of the Asset Management and Trading Division, which was also set up as part of the strategic reorganization announced on 25 November 2008, has not yet been announced.

The bank aims to pay a stable ordinary dividend of SFr20-25 per share, set to rise slightly as BCV grows its business. Under the new strategy, the bank also aims to expand revenues by 4-5 per cent and gross profit by 5-8 per cent per year. The long-term targets are 13-14 per  cent for return on equity for ROE, 57-59 per cent for cost/income ratio and 12 per cent for the Tier 1 capital ratio.

“The ongoing financial crisis is likely to have a temporary effect on these indicators and the bank’s financials in general, particularly in 2009-10. These strategic objectives should thus be viewed from a multi-year perspective,” it said.