Zurich-headquartered UBS recorded its strong second quarter in over a decade, in terms of net new money. There are also positive signals from newly acquired Credit Suisse which saw asset flows turn positive.
UBS Global Wealth Management registered $16.2 billion in net new money in the second quarter of 2023, according to the bank’s financial results which were delayed amid the ongoing takeover of Credit Suisse. This is the highest second-quarter amount recorded at the bank in more than a decade.
Total revenues for the business rose 1 percent as a 14 percent increase in net interest income was offset by a 3 percent decrease in recurring net fee income as well as a 6 percent drop in transaction-based income, mainly due to lower levels of client activity in the Americas and Asia Pacific. Operating expenses climbed 3 percent resulting in a 1.2 percentage point increase in the cost/income ratio to 76.5 percent.
Fee-generating assets grew 3 percent to nearly $1.4 trillion, driven by net new fee generating assets of $12.6 billion.
CS Wealth Flows
At Credit Suisse, there are also positive signs from the asset flows of its wealth management division. According to UBS, Credit Suisse’s wealth unit continued to record outflows in the second quarter but did so at a slower pace compared to previous quarters and turned positive in June.
Throughout July and August 2023, the combined wealth management businesses of UBS and Credit Suisse saw $8 billion of net new money inflows.
