Zuger Kantonalbank is one of the first banks of its kind to present its half-year results. According to the announcement on Tuesday, the bottom line for the first half of 2025 was a profit of 70.9 million Swiss francs, an increase of 18.3 percent compared to the same period in the previous year.

The Zug-based bank generated a net profit of 108 million francs, an increase of 7.2 percent, in the interest business, but also cited the increased pressure on margins in the deposit business in the first half of the year. However, the bank points to a special effect of one-off income of 8.7 million francs. Without it, the figures in the interest business would not look quite so convincing. There were no significant changes in either customer deposits (12.9 billion francs) or customer loans (15.6 billion francs, of which 14.7 billion francs were mortgages).

Performance and New Money: An Even Split

In the commission and trading business, income rose by 11.2 percent to 46.2 million francs without any special effect. The main driver here was the securities and investment business, which increased to 32.6 million francs, an increase of 14.9 percent, in the first half of the year. Assets under management («assets under custody» in Zuger Kantonalbank jargon) rose by 0.8 billion francs to 20.1 billion francs compared to the end of 2024, «around half of which resulted from market performance» (and therefore represents 0.4 billion francs in new money). Thanks to brisk foreign exchange business, trading income amounted to 9.9 million francs, up 16.7 percent on the previous year.

Operating income thus reached 168 million francs in the first half of 2025, an increase of 9 percent.

Restrained Cost Growth

Operating expenses also increased, rising to 71.2 million francs - 3.6 percent higher than the previous year. Administrative expenses grew by 4.3 percent to 24.2 million francs, outpacing personnel costs, which rose by 3.4 percent to 45.4 million francs. The bank attributes this to «volume-related additional costs for IT services and financial data» as well as delayed effects from staff expansion in 2024.

However, the cantonal bank notes that it is once again reporting lower cost growth after three years of expansion. The cost/income ratio is 42.2 percent, an improvement of 1.6 percentage points compared to the same period last year. At 4.1 percent, the growth in total assets (19.7 billion francs) is impressive.

«Cautiously Optimistic»

Hanspeter Rhyner, CEO of Zuger Kantonalbank, comments on the result: «International trade conflicts and a generally subdued global economy led to increased market volatility and subdued growth. Nevertheless, we were able to increase income and strengthen our market position. Net operating income - a measure of operating performance - rose to 82.4 million francs in the first half of the year, an increase of 16.9 percent compared to the same period last year.»

Zuger Kantonalbank is «cautiously optimistic» for the second half of the year. «Thanks to its solid positioning, the bank believes it is in a position to close the 2025 financial year with a slightly higher result than in the previous year, even in a difficult environment.»