Achieve Barclays 2021 net profit of 6.38 billion pounds ($8.67 billion), topping analysts’ expectations of 5.75 billion pounds, as the corporate investment banking division booms.
Net income attributable to shareholders in the fourth quarter was 1.12 billion pounds, beating the median forecast of 756.5 million pounds, according to Refinitiv data.
Profits show 4 times growth from 2020 profits of 1.53 billion pounds, coinciding with the UK’s passing of Covid lockdowns, according to CNBC.
The higher full-year earnings, despite the British lender’s missteps in the fourth quarter of last year, came with chief executive Jes Staley resigning in November following an investigation by regulators into his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.
Profit growth was mainly driven by the corporate investment banking division.
The return on equity reached 13.4%, compared to 14.9% in the third quarter and 3.2% in the fourth quarter of 2020.
The net interest margin was 2.52%, compared to 2.61% at the end of 2020. Credit impairment provisions also declined to 700 million pounds from 4.8 billion pounds in 2020.
2021 was the year in which the bank’s 2016 strategy began to bear fruit, Barclays Chief Executive Officer CS Venkatakrishnan said in a statement on Wednesday.