Barclays on Wednesday reported a full-year net profit of £6.38 billion ($8.67 billion) for 2021, ahead of analyst expectations of £5.75 billion, as its corporate and investment banking division boomed.
Fourth-quarter net income attributable to shareholders came in at £1.12 billion, outstripping a mean forecast of £756.5 million, according to Refinitiv data.
The figures marked a significant improvement from the £1.53 billion net profit reported in 2020 and £220 million in the fourth quarter of that year, as the U.K. navigated fresh nationwide Covid-19 lockdowns.
The British lender endured a turbulent final quarter of 2021, with longtime CEO Jes Staley resigning in November following an investigation by regulators into his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. He was replaced by C.S. Venkatakrishnan.
After the bank’s third-quarter earnings, Staley said 2021 was going to be “quite a year” for Barclays, as a significant boost from its corporate investment banking division continued to propel the group’s return on tangible equity — a key ratio used to assess profitability.
