The group also improved its Tier 1 ration by nearly 2 per cent.

SYZ Group added nearly SFr1 billion ($1.03 billion) of assets to its books in 2017, helped by growth at its private banking and asset management business, the Swiss firm said this week.

The group said its assets under management (AuM) stood at SFr37.2 billion on 31 December, 2017, up from SFr36.3 billion logged at the end of 2016.

However, SYZ’s consolidate operating income dipped 1 per cent last year to SFr215 million. Operating costs also swelled 2.1 per cent to SFr193 million as a result of higher regulatory costs, investments in external operations and recruitment drives at its private bank, SYZ said.

SYZ posted operating results of SFr5.2 million for 2017, up from SFr3.9 million a year earlier. Consolidated net income was SFr3.4 million after taking costs into account.

"Our 2017 operating result reflects the soundness and good financial health of our group,” Eric Syz, chief executive, said. “The fact that our two business lines, wealth and asset management, complement each other means we continue to grow in the markets identified in our development strategy.”

The group’s Tier 1 ratio, a measure of banks’ core capital as a percentage of total assets without adjusting them for risk weightings, was 18.4 per cent, rising from 16.6 per cent in 2016, SYZ said. In Switzerland, a minimum of 3 per cent is required under rules adopted last November.