Barclays' profit quadruples on recovery

BRITISH bank Barclays has announced that its 2021 net profit more than quadrupled as the economy recovered from coronavirus fallout.

Profit after tax surged to almost £6.4 billion, helped by the release of £700 million that had been set aside for bad loans during the pandemic, Barclays said in a statement on Wednesday (23).

That compared with a £1.53-billion profit the prior year when Barclays had taken a vast £4.8-bn charge to cover potential Covid-19 fallout.

The 2021 performance was "driven by an improved macroeconomic outlook" and buoyed also by reduced unsecured lending balances and a benign credit environment.

Pre-tax profit more than doubled to £8.4 billion, aided by record earnings at its investment banking arm.

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"Barclays demonstrated a clear and sustainable path to growth over the course of 2021," said chief executive CS Venkatakrishnan.

"I am proud that we have delivered this resilient performance while continuing to support our clients and customers through another year of Covid-19 related challenges," he added.

"We recognise that the economic environment is more than usually uncertain, with rising inflation rates and tighter monetary policy, while many parts of society continue to recover from the severe social and economic effects of the Covid-19 pandemic."

The group added, however, that it was well positioned for rising interest rates, echoing remarks from rival NatWest.

"Barclays' diversified income streams position the group well for the ongoing economic recovery and rising interest rates," it noted.

Barclays also named Anna Cross as its new finance director with effect from April. The current deputy finance director will reportedly be the first woman to take the top finance job at the lender.

The annual results are the first under Venkatakrishnan, the former head of global markets who was appointed late last year.

His predecessor, Jes Staley, quit in November ahead of contesting the outcome of a UK probe into his historical links with convicted US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Barclays added Wednesday (23) that it has suspended Staley's unvested long-term bonus share awards.

"The committee exercised its discretion to suspend the vesting of all of Mr Staley's unvested awards, pending further developments in respect of the regulatory and legal proceedings related to the ongoing Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulatory Authority investigation regarding Mr Staley," the bank said.

The former CEO still receives his contractual entitlement to £2.4m in cash and shares - the equivalent of 12 months in fixed pay - as well as a pension allowance and other undisclosed benefits.

(AFP)