UBS Net Profit Climbs on Boost From Investment-Banking, Wealth Units — Update

By Adria Calatayud

UBS Group reported a sharply higher net profit for the first quarter, benefiting from strong performances across its investment-banking and wealth-management arms.

The Swiss bank said Wednesday that it remains on track to deliver on its objectives for 2026, as the group approaches the end of its integration of Credit Suisse while it tries to soften the blow from Switzerland's plans to revamp its banking rules.

UBS reported a net profit for the first quarter of $3.04 billion compared with $1.69 billion in the year-earlier period. Analysts expected net profit at $2.33 billion, according to consensus estimates provided by the bank.

The bank said strong momentum with clients drove asset inflows and trading activity. Its core global wealth-management unit brought in $37.4 billion in net new money during the quarter, with inflows across all regions. The Americas region attracted net new assets of $5.3 billion, after being hit by outflows in prior quarters.

Overall revenue rose 13% to $14.24 billion, reflecting double-digit increases in both its wealth management and investment banking. Analysts had forecast revenue of $13.23 billion, according to the same consensus.

Revenue jumped 31% at UBS's investment bank thanks to strong trading-desk performances, with the bank saying its equities, foreign-exchange, rates, and credit businesses delivered record results.

UBS said it is on track to buy back $3 billion of its own stock by the time it reports second-quarter earnings and that it still aims to do more by year-end, subject to visibility on parliamentary deliberations on new capital requirements in its home country.

Switzerland's Federal Council last week eased some of the proposed new capital demands due to start being implemented next year. But it stuck to plans to require UBS to fully back its foreign subsidiaries with capital within the Swiss parent bank as part of draft legislation that will now be debated by lawmakers.

"These developments do not, and will not, change who we are as a firm," UBS Chief Executive Sergio Ermotti said. "We are fully committed to protecting our shareholders while mitigating the impact of these increased requirements, if possible, on our clients, employees and the communities where we live and work."

UBS said the new rules would put it at a competitive disadvantage to global peers and threaten its business model. It said last week that it would evaluate all appropriate measures to mitigate the impact of the proposed measures.

The regulatory overhaul is aimed at preventing a repeat of the problems that led to the rescue takeover of Credit Suisse by UBS three years ago, a deal engineered by Swiss authorities that kicked off a multiyear integration process that is coming to an end.

UBS said the integration is due to be completed by the end of the year after it wrapped up last month the transfer of former Credit Suisse clients in Switzerland to its own platform. Executives saw this as one of the most complex phases of the whole integration process and said the move should allow them to dismantle legacy systems, reap cost savings and focus on attracting new clients.

The bank said client activity remains healthy in the second quarter as markets have remained broadly resilient amid expectations that a durable diplomatic solution to the Middle East conflict is achievable, but cautioned that conditions could shift rapidly.

Write to Adria Calatayud at adria.calatayud@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 29, 2026 02:12 ET (06:12 GMT)