Julius Baer announced the completion of a review aimed at addressing its legacy credit issues. Meanwhile, the bank reported growth in assets under management (AUM) for the first 10 months of this year, driven by client inflows.

The Swiss private banking group stated on Monday that its AUM reached a record CHF 520 billion (USD 643.17 billion) as of the end of October, up from CHF 483 billion at the end of June. This increase was supported by net new money inflows of CHF 11.7 billion and strong equity markets, which offset the impact of a stronger Swiss franc against the US dollar and the sale of its Brazilian subsidiary.

The bank noted that the growth in client assets boosted revenue during the period, with adjusted gross margins remaining broadly stable. It reported a slightly higher adjusted gross margin of just over 82 basis points for the July-October period.

Julius Baer confirmed the conclusion of a credit review conducted to resolve legacy issues, leading to a reduction of approximately CHF 700 million in loan book positions, primarily within its income-generating residential and commercial real estate portfolios. The bank added that this would result in an additional CHF 149 million in loan loss provisions.

"With our clear strategic focus, revised risk appetite framework, and comprehensively strengthened risk functions and processes, we are now fully aligned with our core wealth management proposition," said CEO Stefan Bollinger.