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UBS has reported its second straight quarterly loss as the cost of rescuing rival Credit Suisse continues to weigh on results.
The Swiss bank reported a net loss of $279mn in the final quarter of last year, lower than the $285mn expected by analysts.
It said on Tuesday it planned to reinstate its dividend of 70 cents a share in May and buy back up to $1bn of shares in 2024. The bank had paused its capital returns when it agreed to buy Credit Suisse last March.
“2023 was a defining year in UBS’s history with the acquisition of Credit Suisse,” said UBS chief executive Sergio Ermotti. “As we move to the next phase of our journey, we will focus on restructuring and optimising the combined businesses.”
Ermotti previously described 2024 as a “pivotal year” in the integration of its former rival and on Tuesday he set out long-term targets.
These included increasing wealth management assets to above $5tn by 2028 and completing the legal merger of both groups by the end of June.
The bank said it had reduced its headcount by 3,139 to 112,842 in the final quarter, taking the number of jobs lost last year above 16,000. Tens of thousands more jobs are expected to go in the coming years as the bank focuses on hitting cost reduction targets.
UBS said on Tuesday it was aiming to cut $13bn of costs by the end of 2026, having previously targeted $10bn, with half the reductions expected to be met in 2024.
The bank reported an annual profit of $30bn, which was almost entirely due to an accounting gain as a result of taking over Credit Suisse.
UBS shares have risen by 50 per cent since the bank agreed last March to rescue its former rival. At the end of last year, activist investor Cevian Capital took a €1.2bn stake in the group, betting the bank could double its valuation in the next three to five years.
