Assets under management (AuM) at Julius Baer reached a record 528 billion francs at the end of April. This represents an increase of around 1 percent compared with the end of 2025. According to a statement released on Friday, the growth was driven by positive market performance and net new money inflows of 3,0 billion francs.

Together, these two factors more than offset the negative impact of the continued appreciation of the Swiss franc, the bank added.

Average monthly AuM rose to 520 billion francs (second half of 2025: 507 billion francs). The annualised net new money growth rate of 1,7 percent (second half of 2025: 2,7 percent) was affected by the continued implementation of the group’s comprehensively revised risk and compliance framework, heightened uncertainty stemming from the ongoing Middle East conflict, and a pause in releveraging activity by clients, the bank said.

Strongest Start to a Year in the Bank’s History

«In the first four months of 2026, we recorded the strongest start to a year in Julius Baer Group’s history in terms of operating income, while operational leverage continued to improve,» said CEO Stefan Bollinger. «This overall strong performance was driven by record assets under management, exceptionally strong client activity, and continued cost discipline.»

The adjusted gross margin improved by 10 basis points to 90 basis points (second half of 2025, underlying: 80 basis points). Activity-driven revenues were particularly strong in the first three months of the year before declining noticeably in April, the statement said.

Recurring income margins remained stable at 37 basis points over the same comparison period. Interest-related income margins declined to 23 basis points (second half of 2025: 24 basis points). Activity-driven revenues improved significantly to 29 basis points (second half of 2025: 20 basis points).

The adjusted cost/income ratio improved to 62 percent from 67 percent in the second half of 2025.

Management currently does not expect the exceptionally high level of client activity seen in the first quarter of 2026 to be repeated in the coming months. However, following the strong performance in the first months of the year, the bank expects IFRS group profit for the first half of 2026 to be «significantly above that of the first half of 2025».

Far-Reaching Changes in Executive Management

The bank also announced an expansion of its executive board. Effective from the beginning of June, Thomas Frauenlob, Co-Head Region Western Markets & Switzerland, based in Zurich, and Rajesh Manwani, Co-Head Global Products & Solutions, based in Singapore, have been appointed to the executive board.

The bank said these changes would further strengthen the executive board and ensure a balanced representation of group functions as well as client and product expertise. At the same time, the revised composition reflects the group’s clear growth orientation.

By contrast, the role of Group General Counsel, currently held by Christoph Hiestand, will no longer be part of the executive board. However, the position will continue to report directly to the CEO, with no changes to day-to-day responsibilities.