BMO Financial wealth management arm has reported a net income of C$144m ($104.5m) for Q2 2020, a 53% slump compared to C$305m a year ago.
The unit’s adjusted net income, which excludes the amortisation of acquisition-related intangible assets, dropped 51% to C$153m from C$315m over the period.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Access deeper industry intelligence
Experience unmatched clarity with a single platform that combines unique data, AI, and human expertise.
In traditional wealth, reported net income plunged 29% to C$160m from C$226m while adjusted net income fell 28% to C$169m from C$236m.
The fall was said to be mainly due to a legal provision.
Total revenue at the wealth management unit was C$890m for the three-month period ending April 2020, versus C$1.84bn in the previous year.
Assets under administration rose 1% year-on-year to C$400.64bn, due to favourable foreign exchange and growth in client assets.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalDataAssets under management were C$464.16bn, a slight decrease from the prior year.
Covid-19 hits group performance
At a group level, the firm’s reported net income nosedived 54% to C$689m in Q2 2020 from C$1.5bn in Q1 2019.
This was driven by higher loan loss provisions due to the Covid-19 crisis.
The group’s total provision for credit losses in the February-April quarter was C$1.12bn, compared to C$176m in the corresponding quarter of 2019.
Adjusted net income at the group decreased to C$715m from C$1.52bn.
BMO Financial Group CEO Darryl White said: “While the full scope and scale of the economic and social impact of the pandemic remains uncertain, we have never been better positioned to face these challenges.
“We entered this crisis from a position of strength, with good operating momentum across our diverse businesses, strong capital and liquidity, a strong record of performance in risk management, disciplined expense management and long history of overcoming challenges together with our customers.
“For the second quarter, we demonstrated the resilience of our earnings power as we earned through the impact of market volatility and prudent loan loss provisioning.”
