Standard Chartered third-quarter net profit of US$931 million beats estimates

Asia World
Standard Chartered, one of Hong Kong’s three currency-issuing banks, reported better-than-expected profit for the third quarter, driven by its wealth management and global banking units.

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Net profit for the three months to September came in at US$931 million under international accounting rules, beating forecasts of US$886 million.

The London-based bank, which generates much of its income in Asia, reported US$1.7 billion in pre-tax profit, exceeding the US$1.5 billion forecast by analysts. Operating income, which is similar to revenue in US accounting terms, rose 11 per cent to US$4.9 billion.

“We have delivered a strong performance in the third quarter driven by a record quarter in wealth solutions and strong growth in our global markets business,” CEO Bill Winters said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange on Wednesday.

“We are doubling investments in our consistently fast-growing and high-returning wealth management business, and we will continue to reshape our mass retail business to focus on developing our pipeline of future affluent and international banking clients.”

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Operating income for the bank’s wealth solutions business rose 32 per cent to US$694 million, supported by continued strong momentum and an increase in affluent new clients. Global markets’ operating income rose 16 per cent to US$840 million.