Surprise write-down at Julius Bär ahead of interim report

Zurich-based private bank Julius Bär has booked a further CHF130 million ($157 million) impairment on its portfolio, the bank announced on Tuesday evening. + Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox The announcement came as a surprise, just two days before the interim report was due and shortly after Bloomberg published a story on these value adjustments. As a result, first-half profits are expected to come in below last year’s figure, when the bank reported earnings of CHF452 million. The valuation adjustment is unrelated to the fallout from the collapse of Austrian investor René Benko, a bank spokesman told AWP. In 2023, Julius Bär wrote down CHF606 million on loans to Benko’s bankrupt Signa group. Chief Executive Philipp Rickenbacher stepped down in the wake of the losses. + What lies ahead for Switzerland: an economic outlook for 2025 The new value adjustment follows a thorough review of the group’s remaining loan portfolio. Julius Bär said it applied cautious ...