British bank Barclays, seeking to fix its battered reputation caused by last year’s Libor rate-rigging scandal, said Wednesday that it returned to profit in the first quarter with net earnings of 839 million pounds (HK$9.94 billion) after a loss in the first three months of last year.
Barclays recorded a profit after tax following a net loss of 598 million (HK$7.08 billion) in the first quarter of last year, the bank said in an earnings statement.
“While there remains much to do to build a stronger and more resilient Barclays, we are completely focused on executing our Transform programme and are making good early progress,” Barclays chief executive Antony Jenkins said in the statement.
The bank’s profit was skewed by changes in the value of Barclays’ debt and owing to an absence of the provisions seen a year earlier to compensate clients mis-sold insurance.
Adjusted profit before tax was down a quarter to 1.79 billion (HK$21.20 billion), hit in part by restructuring costs totalling 514 million pounds (HK$6.09 billion) as part of Jenkins’ Transform programme, Barclays said.
The bank last week announced a fresh shake-up of its senior staff, including the departure of its head of investment banking, in the wake of last year’s Libor rate-rigging scandal.