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UBS has become the latest bank to reap a windfall from the market turmoil unleashed by Donald Trump’s tariffs, as its traders helped power the Swiss lender to better than expected first-quarter profits.
Revenues at its markets business surged 32 per cent to $2.5bn in the quarter, after Trump’s aggressive trade war triggered volatility across global stock and currency markets.
Trump’s erratic tariff policy since his return to the White House has helped propel trading revenues at big banks in Europe and on Wall Street, as investors contend with the fallout from his effort to reshape the global trading order.
UBS reported net profit of $1.7bn in the quarter, surpassing the $1.3bn forecast by analysts, but down from $1.8bn in the same period a year ago. Revenues were flat at $12.6bn.
Revenues at its investment banking division climbed 16 per cent to $3.3bn in the quarter.
Its global wealth management division attracted $32bn in new assets in the period, with the unit’s pre-tax profit of $1.4bn driven by higher fees.
Chief executive Sergio Ermotti said: “The power and scale of our diversified global franchise, coupled with our continued focus on clients, drove strong business momentum in the quarter and net new inflows in our asset-gathering businesses.”
Ermotti, who returned to lead the bank’s integration of former rival Credit Suisse in 2023, said the process was “on track”. UBS is in the midst of switching more than 1mn Swiss retail clients on to its systems, one of the most complicated parts of the integration.
“As we start to execute on the next critical phase of integration, I remain pleased with the substantial progress we have made so far,” Ermotti said.
