Swiss bank EFG International reports lower-than-expected half-year profit growth (updated)

EFG International AG

22/07/2026 06:27

Adds details on regional growth figures
By Simon Ferdinand Eibach

    July 22 (Reuters) - Swiss bank EFG International EFGN.S on Wednesday reported half-year profit growth that was lower than analyst estimates, while registering steady expansion in assets under management driven by double-digit growth in the Continental Europe & Middle East region.

    EFG shares fell 3.43% to CHF 17.46 during the first hours of trading, with Vontobel analysts pointing to disappointment on profits.
  

    In a call with journalists, EFG executives said that the second quarter performance was in line with the first quarter and therefore below analyst expectations, flagging a drag from the insurance portfolio in the last two months.
  

    Results in the first half of 2025 had benefited from the one-time effect of significant insurance recovery, adding CHF 59.5 million to the net profit of CHF 221.2 million reported in that period. Excluding exceptional items incurred, EFG International reported a 5% increase in 2026 first half net profit to CHF 184.6 million.
  

    The lender had assets under management of CHF 196.3 billion ($241.51 billion) at the end of June 2026, corresponding to a growth rate of 6.5% compared to the end of last year. The Continental Europe & Middle East region saw a growth rate of 14.9% in net new assets, outperforming all other regions. 
  

    With regard to the conflict in the Middle East, one of EFG International's senior executives said it has led to an "acceleration of cross-border wealth movement."     
  

    CEO Giorgio Pradelli said in an analyst call that the bank has an advisory office in Dubai and not a booking center, adding that EFG International also covers the region from Monaco, London and Switzerland.
  

    The bank said that it had closed the acquisition of Zurich-based Quilvest, a Swiss private bank with longstanding ties to Latin America, on July 21. EFG International has been increasing its focus on growth in the Latin America region. 
  

    Chief Financial Officer Dimitris Politis also said the lender's 39 new client relationship officers hired in the first half of 2026 were a driver behind continued growth in net new assets. According to media reports, EFG increased its headcount in Brazil and Miami 
    last year
     with the goal of expanding in the southern part of the Western Hemisphere.
  

          
     
($1 = 0.8128 Swiss francs)
     

 (Reporting by Simon Ferdinand Eibach in Gdansk, editing by Ronojoy Mazumdar)
 ((SimonFerdinand.Eibach@thomsonreuters.com;))