Barclays annual profit nearly trebles as bad loans ebb

[LONDON] Barclays reported its annual profit nearly trebled as bad loan charges plunged and its investment bank continued its strong recent performance amid market volatility in the Covid-19 pandemic.

The British lender on Wednesday (Feb 23) reported profit before tax for 2021 of £8.4 billion (S$15.4 billion), up from £3.1 billion a year ago and above the average analysts'forecast of £8.1 billion.

Barclays said it would buy back £1 billion of its own shares and increase its full-year dividend to 4 pence per share, in its first update to investors since C S Venkatakrishnan took over as chief executive following the shock exit of Jes Staley in November.

Staley left after a dispute with British financial regulators over how he described his ties with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Venkatakrishnan, who is known inside the bank as Venkat and like Staley is a former employee of JPMorgan, indicated after his elevation to the CEO role that the lender's investment banking-focused strategy is "the right one".

The bank confirmed its long-standing chief financial officer Tushar Morzaria had decided to retire from the lender, with his deputy Anna Cross set to take on the role from April. REUTERS