ZURICH (Aug 14): UBS reported on Wednesday, a net profit of US$1.14 billion (RM5.05 billion) for the April-June period, the first results since the completion of the bank’s formal legal merger with its one-time rival Credit Suisse.

The net profit attributable to shareholders for Switzerland’s largest bank compared with the US$528 million forecast by analysts in a company-provided poll.

The bank also reported group total revenue of US$11.9 billion, which compared with the consensus figure of US$11.6 billion.

“Our first-half results reflect the significant progress we have made since the closing of the acquisition, as we deliver on all of our commitments to stakeholders,” UBS chief executive officer Sergio Ermotti said in a statement.

“We are well positioned to meet our financial targets and return to the levels of profitability we delivered, before being asked to step in and stabilise Credit Suisse,” he added.

UBS also said it had achieved US$0.9 billion of additional gross cost savings, reaching around 45% of its cumulative annualised gross cost saving ambitions.

UBS said the macroeconomic outlook was clouded by ongoing conflicts, geopolitical tensions and the upcoming US elections. It expected these uncertainties to persist for the foreseeable future, and that they would likely lead to higher market volatility than in the first half of the year.

The bank announced on May 31 that it had concluded the merger of the main parent companies of UBS and Credit Suisse, which it acquired last year, after its longtime competitor collapsed following a string of financial setbacks and scandals.

UBS reported a nearly US$29 billion profit during the second quarter of last year due to a huge one-off gain, reflecting how the acquisition costs were far below Credit Suisse’s value.

Swiss authorities oversaw the first merger of two global systemically important banks — as designated by the Financial Stability Board — in the first half of last year.

After that, UBS posted two consecutive quarters of losses, due to the cost of absorbing its rival.

Investors warmed to the takeover, by this summer pushing up the value of UBS’ shares by more than two-thirds since it bought Credit Suisse in March 2023. However, UBS shares have since lost ground during recent turmoil in global markets.

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