The Geneva-headquartered private bank looks back happily on a year that saw financial results improve and capture a high-profile CEO from a rival.

Geneva-headquartered Pictet, which recently jolted the industry by hiring Julius Baer’s chief executive, Boris Collardi, yesterday said operating income last year rose 16 per cent to SFr2.523 billion ($2.68 billion), while consolidated net profit surged 36 per cent to SFr572 million.

The unaudited figures for 2017 come ahead of the annual report at the end of April. Pictet first began issuing financial figures in 2014 – along with Lombard Odier and Mirabaud – after these three private banks changed from their old unlimited liability ownership structure, requiring them to disclose figures.

Assets under management or custody rose by SFr47 billion to a record high of SFr509 billion at 31 December 2017, pushed up by strong markets and net inflows. Net new money in asset and wealth management reached SFr14.1 billion.

The core tier 1 capital ratio – a common measure of a bank’s financial strength – was 20.2 per cent.

“2017 has been an outstanding year for Pictet. Sound portfolio management performance and steady growth in new client assets have benefited all business lines. Our diversification across wealth and asset management reinforces the Group’s stability and therefore our financial strength,” Nicolas Pictet, senior managing partner, said.

Last November, shares in Julius Baer were hit when it confirmed that Collardi, who has been chief executive of the Zurich-listed bank from 2009, and associated with that firm's high-profile expansion, had joined Pictet. Collardi joined as a partner, slated to take up his post by the middle of 2018 at the latest.