Investec banks on banking for profit boost
Investec today reported that its profits for the year had inched up, thanks in part to a strong performance in its banking and wealth and investment divisions.
Operating profits before tax for the specialist financial services company's year to March edged up to £567.4m, up 0.9 per cent compared with £562.5m the year before.
Operating profit in Investec's specialist banking unit rose to £409.2m, up 4.3 per cent compared with the prior year's £392.3m. Meanwhile, profits in the banking division's South African business rose by 12.7 per cent and profits in the UK and other businesses sector grew by 20.9 per cent.
Meanwhile, operating profits in Investec's wealth and investment division increased to £85.7m, up 8.8 per cent from the prior year's £78.8m.
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The firm's asset management offering, however, did not perform as well, with operating profits slipping to £134.8m, down 9.5 per cent compared with £149m the year before. Total funds under management dropped to £75.7bn from £77.5bn.
The results for the company, which is listed in both London and Johannesburg but reports in pounds sterling, will have been somewhat affected by the volatility of the rand. The average exchange rate for the South African currency depreciated by 16.3 per cent throughout the period.
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"The decisive action we took within the specialist bank in prior years, supported by continued penetration of our target client base, has achieved strong results," remarked Stephen Koseff, chief executive of Investec. "Wealth and investment's increased collaboration with the private banking business is proving successful."
"Asset management have continued to see good net inflows across their client groups. Overall, a good performance in a challenging environment reinforces our strategy of building a diversified business model."
Bernard Kantor, managing director of Investec, added: "These results demonstrate our ability to deliver a good and consistent performance even when faced with uncertain economic conditions."
The markets, however, were not so optimistic. At time of writing, shares in the FTSE 250 company were down three per cent at 462.2p.