TOP NEWS IN GLOBAL FINANCIALS
– Germany's Commerzbank AG said its full-year 2024 net result hit a record €2.68 billion, about a fifth more than the year-ago €2.22 billion. Revenue grew 6% to €11.11 billion as a 7% increase in net commission income helped offset lower net interest income, the bank said in an ad-hoc release. Return on tangible equity was 9.2% for the year, ahead of a target of at least 8%. Commerzbank proposed a dividend of 65 cents per share, up from 35 cents per share in respect of its 2023 results. It also announced a new €400 million share buyback program after completing an earlier €600 million tranche. The new buyback will begin after Commerzbank releases its full 2024 financial statements on Feb. 13 along with its updated strategy.
– Japan's National Tax Agency will start sharing cryptocurrency trade data with other countries in 2027 to crack down on tax evasion, Nikkei Asia reported. Initially, 54 countries and regions, including the UK and France, will participate, with the US and others joining in 2028. The information exchange will include traders' names, country of residence and transaction amounts. Taxes will be imposed on previously unreported profits uncovered through this system.
➤ RBI braces for biggest 2024 declines among central European banks
Varying interest rates, shifting loan demand and evolving regulations will shape 2024–25 profit and margin prospects for major central European lenders, with some facing declines while others anticipate growth.
➤ CaixaBank expects lending income to recover toward 2025-end
Spain's largest domestic lender forecasts a mid-single-digit fall this year in its most important source of revenues as eurozone interest rates decline, CFO Javier Pano said during a full-year earnings call.
➤ Most US regional banks report YOY earnings growth in Q4 2024
Of the 51 banks with assets ranging from $10 billion to $100 billion that disclosed 2024 fourth-quarter financial results between Jan. 13 and Jan. 24, about two-thirds reported higher earnings per share.
AMERICAS
– B. Riley Financial Inc. is considering a spinoff of its securities business into a separate company as it seeks to recover from recent losses, Bloomberg News reported, citing people familiar with the company. A separate holding company would manage assets, including the wealth management division led by co-founder Bryant Riley, while retaining a stake in the securities business, according to details shared by senior officials with employees.
– The Texas Stock Exchange (TXSE) filed its Form 1 registration with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and is eyeing an early 2026 launch, its parent TXSE Group Inc. announced. TXSE Group has closed its initial capital raise at $161 million from investors including BlackRock Inc., Citadel Securities LLC and The Charles Schwab Corp., and is also considering additional financing.
– The US Treasury Department has granted Elon Musk and representatives from his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) team access to the US government's payment system that disburses trillions of dollars annually, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Elsewhere, David Lebryk, a senior official at the Treasury Department, who oversaw the payment system through President Donald Trump's first term and former President Joe Biden's administration, announced his retirement on Jan. 31 following a disagreement with allies of Musk over access to the system, sources for The Washington Post said. Lebryk served as acting Treasury Secretary until the confirmation of Scott Bessent.
Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent expressing concern that "officials associated with Musk may have intended to access these payment systems to illegally withhold payments to any number of programs."
Click here for more of the day's essential bank and financial services news in the US and Canada.
EUROPE
– NatWest Group PLC is raising its overall bonus pot for 2024 by 25% to about £450 million from £356 million for 2023, Sky News reported. The bank's shares have nearly doubled over the last 12 months, according to the report. The UK government, which at one point owned more than 80% of NatWest, now holds a roughly 8% stake in the bank and could cease to become a shareholder in the coming weeks, according to the report. A NatWest spokesperson declined to comment, Sky News said.
– Swiss private bank Julius Bär Gruppe AG reported a full-year 2024 IFRS net profit of CHF1.02 billion, up from €453.4 million in 2023, which was impacted by its exposure to the now-defunct Austrian property group Signa. Its assets under management grew to CHF497.4 billion from CHF427.4 billion a year before, with net new money over the period hitting CHF14.2 billion. Julius Bär confirmed that it was reducing the size of its executive board, which will now only be made up of five people. "A new leadership structure and a leaner executive board will increase accountability," new CEO Stefan Bollinger said in a statement.
Click here for more of the day's essential bank and financial services news in Europe.
MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA
– Saudi Awwal Bank reported a 15.25% year-over-year increase in its 2024 full-year profit to 8.07 billion Saudi Arabian riyals. Total assets for the period grew 12% to 399.44 billion riyals and investments increased nearly 2% to 98.41 billion riyals.
– Arab Bank Group recommended a 40% distribution of cash dividends after the Jordan-based lender booked a record net profit of $1 billion in 2024, up from $829.6 million a year ago. The increase was driven by a 21% net income growth to $1.01 billion.
– Saudi Arabia-based Derayah Financial Co. set its IPO price range at between 27 riyals and 30 riyals per share, implying an offering size of between 1.35 billion riyals and 1.50 billion riyals.
ASIA-PACIFIC
– The Thai government is looking to streamline regulations for traditional and new types of securities, Finance Minister Pichai Chunhavajira told Nikkei Asia. Digital assets in the country are regulated by an emergency decree to supplement the existing securities law in 2018. Pichai believes that putting conventional and digital assets in separate silos will not facilitate investment. The country's Securities and Exchange Commission also plans to broaden its powers under new laws to balance innovation with investor protection, according to the report.
– Punjab National Bank reported a consolidated net profit of 46.49 billion rupees for the quarter ended December 2024, up 106.36% from 22.53 billion rupees a year earlier. Its nine-month net profit rose 144.77% to 127.97 billion rupees from 52.28 billion rupees.
Click here for more of the day's essential financial news in Asia-Pacific.
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