Following a prosperous third quarter, Standard Chartered Bank, noted for its focus on emerging markets, has reported a rise in profits. The bank now anticipates meeting its return on tangible equity (RoTE) goal ahead of its original schedule by one year.
Standard Chartered’s pre-tax profit for the third quarter of 2025 saw a 10% increase from the previous year, growing to just shy of $2 billion. This is according to the bank’s own recently released financial results.
An increase of 5% was also noted in operating income, reaching $5.1 billion. Simultaneously, net interest income fell by 1% to $2.7 billion. However, non-interest income demonstrated a significant climb of 12% to $2.4 billion. The majority of this remarkable growth can be attributed to a record-breaking quarter experienced by wealth solutions, in conjunction with global banking. These sectors witnessed respective income growth of 27% and 23%. Meanwhile, operating expenses rose by 4% to $3 billion as a result of strategic investments intended to stimulate business development. Efficiency-related savings helped to partially offset this increase.
The bank’s year-to-date pre-tax profit similarly displayed a promising trend, increasing by 16% to approximately $6.7 billion.
Given these promising outcomes, Standard Chartered has revised its projections upwards. The bank now expects its operating income to demonstrate a compound annual growth rate of 5-7% from 2023 to 2026. Notably, the year 2025 is predicted to reach the upper end of this bracket, barring any remarkable items. This represents a shift from the bank’s previous forecast, which placed expectations towards the lower end of the range.
In addition to these adjustments, the bank has also forecasted that its return on tangible equity (RoTE) will stand at roughly 13% in 2025. This indicates that the bank is on track to achieve its target one year sooner than initially planned.
Standard Chartered’s CEO, Bill Winters, commented on the financial results, stating that the progress seen was widely distributed. However, he attributed a significant proportion of the bank’s success to a refined strategic focus on meeting the cross-border and affluent banking requirements of their clients. This stance has shown fruitful results, with substantial double-digit growth being observed in Wealth Solutions and Global Banking. There is also positive momentum in the bank’s Global Markets flow business.
What has led to Standard Chartered’s increase in profits in Q3?
Standard Chartered saw a rise in profits due largely to a record-breaking quarter in wealth solutions and global banking, leading to a 10% increase in pre-tax profit for Q3.
How has the bank revised its future projections?
Standard Chartered now expects its operating income to demonstrate a compound annual growth rate of 5-7% from 2023 to 2026, with its return on tangible equity (RoTE) estimated to be approximately 13% in 2025.
What strategic focus does CEO Bill Winters believe is paying off?
Winters attributes the bank’s recent success to a strategic focus on meeting the cross-border and affluent banking needs of their clients. This has led to substantial growth in the Wealth Solutions and Global Banking sectors.
