Swiss-listed Bank Sarasin said its net profit for 2008 dropped to SFr114.4 million ($97.4 million) compared with SFr173.5 million a year before, which the bank said was a respectable result given the impact on financial services from harsh market conditions.

The bank said its client inflows in the second half of last year stood at SFr7.3 billion, up from SFr7.2 billion in the first half. Compared with the previous year, net new money growth rose by 30 per cent, which the bank said reflected “a clear sign of the enormous confidence that existing and new clients have in the Sarasin Group as a sustainable Swiss private bank”.

Banks such as Sarasin and Julius Baer have benefited from the woes suffered by larger rivals such as UBS, although the entire sector has not been able to escape market conditions entirely.

Last year, Sarasin hired 122 new client relationship managers, a rise of 41 per cent from the year before, taking its total CRM headcount to 416. The average acquisition performance per CRM rose by 3 per cent to SFr40.8 million in 2008, the bank said in a statement.

Market performance and exchange rate movements reduced total assets under management by 16 per cent to SFr69.7 billion.

“Despite exceptionally difficult market conditions, our bank managed to produce a very respectable result for the past financial year. We expect the challenging market situation to continue in the 2009 financial year. The progress we have already made in the framework of our growth strategy means our business should reap the benefits as and when financial markets eventually recover,”
Christoph Ammann, chairman, said.