LONDON – The private bank Lombard Odier unveiled its financial results publicly for the first time in its 218-year history on Thursday, reporting a profit and becoming the latest Swiss financial institution to pull back the curtain on what has been a traditionally secretive banking culture.
Lombard Odier’s report on Thursday came just two days after its Geneva-based rival Pictet Group gave the public a glimpse of its results for the first time in more than 200 years. Pictet was founded in 1805.
Both wealth managers restructured this year to become more traditional corporate partnerships. The changes required them to make disclosures about their finances.
Lombard Odier posted a profit of 62.5 million Swiss francs, or about $68.2 million, in the first six months of 2014. The company did not provide comparisons with prior periods.
“These results are in line with our expectations and reflect both the investments we make towards our strategic objectives as well as the conservative use of our balance sheet,” Patrick Odier, Lombard Odier’s senior managing partner, said in a news release.
Lombard Odier, which was founded in 1796 and is headed by eight managing partners, had total client assets of 211 billion francs at the end of June and has about 2,000 employees.
The bank’s core Tier 1 capital ratio, a measure of its ability to absorb losses, was 23.8 percent at the end of June, well above the requirements of Swiss regulators.
The public reports by Lombard Odier and Pictet come as Swiss banks, facing pressure from foreign tax authorities, have moved away from their secretive traditions in recent years.
Some Swiss banks have refused to hold new assets for Americans to avoid strict reporting requirements. Other institutions have agreed to provide information about undeclared accounts to the authorities in the United States, Britain and elsewhere.
Last year, Lombard Odier agreed to sign up to a voluntary disclosure program with the tax authorities in the United States. The program required the banks to provide some information on Swiss-based accounts held by Americans. Those banks could then face fines, rather than criminal prosecution, for any undeclared accounts.
The inquiry by the United States has resulted in settlements with some of Switzerland’s largest banks, including a guilty plea to criminal wrongdoing by Credit Suisse in July.
Pictet is one of several Swiss financial institutions facing a criminal inquiry by the authorities in the United States regarding tax compliance by its clients.
Pictet has said that it believes any settlement with the United States would ultimately show that “Pictet acted with great care and in full compliance with the legal and regulatory requirements.”