UBS Q2 Profits Skyrocket 100% as Investment Banking & Wealth Management Fuel Revenue Surge

UBS just flexed its Wall Street muscles—Q2 profits doubled thanks to its investment banking and wealth management arms. Guess someone’s still getting rich while the rest of us HODL.

Banking on the bulls: The Swiss giant’s revenue surge proves traditional finance isn’t dead… just slower than DeFi yields.

Wealth whispers: Private clients kept the fees flowing—turns out 0% interest rates still can’t kill old-money inertia.

Cynical take: Nothing unites bankers and crypto degens like a good bull market. Only difference? Their suits cost more than your NFT portfolio.

Investment gains and wealth income boost performance

UBS said its global markets unit within investment banking brought in $2.3 billion, marking a 25% increase year-on-year. It linked that growth to market volatility early in the quarter. Its global wealth management division saw a 12% jump in transaction-based income, also reflecting client activity during that time.

Still, CEO Sergio Ermotti warned that client behavior remains cautious despite equity markets bouncing back. “So clients are still on a kind of wait-and-see attitude, not only institutional and private clients, but… also corporate clients,” Sergio told CNBC’s Carolin Roth. “You see the deployment of cash, but the conviction level is not yet to the extent that it will make it more constructive.”

UBS added that Q3 started with strong performance in risk assets, especially international equities, and a weaker U.S. dollar. It also reported that net interest income (NII) for Q2 landed at $1.965 billion, in line with its projection of a low single-digit percentage decline.

Looking ahead, UBS expects NII to remain broadly stable in Swiss francs in the next quarter, with a slight uptick when translated into U.S. dollars. A post-earnings note from Citi analysts said, “The outlook suggests that NII has finally troughed and existing financial targets have been reiterated, but there is no update on capital return plans.”

The bank’s NII remains a focal point for investors as Switzerland’s central bank recently moved rates back to 0%, trying to manage inflation and stabilize the Swiss franc. “For the time being, it’s going to be difficult to see that [interest] rates will go up,” Sergio said. “The economy is still quite resilient and… inflation has not abated to the level necessary, probably, to take actions.”

Credit Suisse merger moves ahead amid capital battle

UBS also gave an update on its 2023 acquisition of Credit Suisse, saying the integration “remains on track.” It confirmed that one-third of Swiss client accounts have been moved over and 70% of the expected $13 billion in cost savings have already been secured.

The bank said it has completed $1 billion in share buybacks in the first half of 2025 and plans to buy back another $2 billion in the second half. Despite the strong profit, UBS shares have taken hits in 2025 due to uncertainty linked to U.S. markets. That’s largely because of President Trump’s reciprocal tariffs, which have shaken investor expectations around global trade.

UBS addressed that issue directly, saying, “Investor sentiment remains broadly constructive, tempered by persistent macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainties.” The bank also noted that clients appear increasingly ready to invest. “Against this backdrop, our client conversations and deal pipelines indicate a high level of readiness among investors and corporates to deploy capital, as conviction around the macro outlook strengthens.”

Sergio said the constant back-and-forth around trade was exhausting people’s patience. “People need to see the endgame of all these [trade] discussions,” he said. “Probably there is a little bit of a news fatigue.”

The Swiss government has flagged UBS as “too big to fail” and warned that its failure could damage the country’s economy. But UBS doesn’t agree with the scale of the proposal. It said in June that it supports the rules “in principle” but called the plan “extreme.” It estimates the changes WOULD force it to hold up to $42 billion more in CET1 capital.

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