Julius Baer experienced a robust start to 2026, delivering its strongest first four months in the company's history in terms of operating income. This performance was largely due to record-high assets under management (AuM) reaching CHF 528 billion, up 1% from year-end 2025. This growth in AuM was propelled by positive market performance and CHF 3.0 billion in net new money inflows, which successfully counteracted the negative effect of the appreciating Swiss franc. The group’s monthly average AuM also increased to CHF 520 billion, up from CHF 507 billion in the second half of 2025.
The firm's improved operating leverage was evident with its adjusted gross margin rising by 10 basis points to 90 basis points, compared to 80 basis points in H2 2025, primarily driven by a significant surge in client activity, particularly in the first three months of the year. This strong activity-driven income, coupled with sustained cost discipline, led to an improvement in the adjusted cost/income ratio (CIR) to 62%, down from an underlying 67% in H2 2025. The adjusted pre-tax profit margin also rose to 32 basis points, up from an underlying 26 basis points in H2 2025.
Julius Baer is well-capitalized, with its CET1 capital ratio improving to 18.1% from 17.4% at the end of 2025, significantly exceeding internal and regulatory requirements. The total capital ratio stood at 24.0%, and the tier 1 leverage ratio was 4.8%. Although client activity softened in April, the bank anticipates a substantially higher IFRS net profit for the first half of 2026 compared to the first half of 2025, attributing this to strong initial performance and the absence of significant one-off effects. The company remains on track to achieve its CHF 130 million gross run-rate efficiency improvements by the end of 2028 and its net new money target of 4-5% by 2028.
Stefan Bollinger, CEO of Julius Baer, highlighted the strong performance as a testament to the franchise's strength and the quality of their advice in navigating volatile markets. The Executive Board was also strengthened with the appointments of Thomas Frauenlob and Rajesh Manwani, effective June 1, 2026, signaling a pivot toward growth. Recruitment efforts also show positive momentum, with over 30 relationship managers onboarded and discussions ongoing with close to 50 additional candidates.
