Credit Suisse has announced its fourth quarter and full-year financial results for 2018 this Thursday, with the Swiss multinational firm showing a solid year by reporting its first post-tax profit since 2014.
Specifically, net income attributable to shareholders was CHF 2.1 billion ($2.08 billion), this is around CHF 3.1 billion more than that achieved in 2017 when the company reported a net loss of CHF 983 million.
Net revenues for the firm was CHF 20.92 billion in 2018. When compared to the previous year, which had net revenues of CHF 20.9 billion, this is a very slight increase of 0.1 percent.
Commenting on the results, Tidjane Thiam, Chief Executive Officer of Credit Suisse, commented: “We have achieved Group reported pre-tax income of CHF 3.4 billion, 90% higher than in 2017. Net income attributable to shareholders reached CHF 2.1 billion. This is our first annual post-tax profit since 2014 and it was only achieved thanks to the support of our clients, investors and other key stakeholders and the hard work of our teams.”
Credit Suisse Ends 2018 on Solid Footing
Focusing in on the fourth quarter of 2018, Credit Suisse also managed to achieve a strong quarter. This is despite the fact that during the final quarter, Credit Suisse experienced widespread Volatility and lower activity levels across the market.
During Q4 of 2018, the bank achieved its highest adjusted pre-tax income since 2013, which was CHF 846 million. This is also 49 percent higher than in the final quarter of 2018.
Reported pre-tax income, on the other hand, came in at CHF 628 million. When measured against the same quarter of the previous year, this is more than a four-fold increase and represents the 11th consecutive profitable quarter (on a quarter-on-quarter comparison), the statement said.
“We saw during the fourth quarter the continued benefits of positive operating Leverage in challenging market conditions as well as the benefits of our de-risking efforts as we recorded no material losses in our credit activities, in spite of large increases in spreads,” continued Thiam.
“We delivered a profit in one of our most challenging fourth quarters in years, with an adjusted* pre-tax income of CHF 846 million, up 49% year on year. The fourth quarter of 2018 was our ninth consecutive quarter of year on year profit growth and our eleventh consecutive profitable quarter, both on [an] adjusted* basis. Our focus on risk and control helped ensure we remained resilient when navigating headwinds,” he added.
Markets Appear More Steady in 2019
According to the statement released today, the market volatility and tough market conditions have already begun to improve in 2019. So far, the Swiss firm has seen “signs of normalisation,” which is contributing towards a less negative trading environment than that seen in the final quarter of last year. Nonetheless, the trading activity seen so far in 2019 is still weaker than that achieved in the first quarter of last year.
