Oct 24, 2018
Barclays profit jump powered by strength in trading unit
Barclays posted a big jump in revenues from its trading operations in the third quarter, piling further pressure on activist investor Edward Bramson, who wants the group to shrink its investment bank. Equity trading revenues jumped by more than a third to hit £471m during the third quarter, while income in the closely-watch fixed income trading unit was up 9.7 per cent at £688m. The strong performance of Barclays' trading desks compared favourably with larger investment banks like Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan, although its overall trading revenues are dwarfed by its US rivals. "During the third quarter our corporate and investment bank outperformed peers again in markets, with a 19 per cent increase in income," said Jes Staley, chief executive, who has defined his tenure at Barclays with a strategy that involves expanding the investment bank. Peter Richardson, banks analyst at Berenberg, said: "Importantly, strength of the investment bank has been sustained." The strong performance in trading helped the overall Barclays group generate a big jump in profits that beat market expectations.
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