Bank of Bermuda this week announced strong third quarter results driven by the performance of its Global Fund Service business.

Edward H. Gomez, Chief Financial Officer, said: "The quarter's results reflect excellent performance by our fee-based business lines. Our largest business, Global Fund Services, led the way with a 16% growth in fee revenues, which drove our overall non-interest income to a record USD 76.6 million for the quarter."

Gomez continued: "Operating costs have increased to support business growth while we remain focused on discretionary cost controls and improving operating efficiency. Third quarter expenses also include some one-time charges as we continue to streamline our support structure and focus headcount on areas of business growth."

Chief Executive Officer, Henry B. Smith, added: "These results demonstrate our success at growing our business in carefully selected niche markets where our relationship-driven approach gives us a strategic advantage. We have continued to expand our global presence in the current quarter through our recently announced South Africa and Tokyo offices."

Smith added: "Another key focus is developing innovative technology tailored to the needs of our client base, and we have recently achieved the launch of new products for our GFS client base that we anticipate will improve both service and revenues. We believe that such investments, combined with strengthened client-focused teams, provide a solid base for continued success as markets recover."

Total revenue in the quarter rose from USD 100.2 million in 2002 to USD 117 million in 2003, equivalent to a 17% increase. Non-interest income, which accounts for 65% of total revenue, increased by 15% to USD 76.6 million.

Fees from Bank of Bermuda's global fund services (GFS) products, the largest portion of non-interest income, increased USD 5.2 million to USD 37.4 million. This 16% increase resulted from increases in the values of its hedge fund and fund of funds client base in North America and Europe, as well as hedge fund and pension fund assets in the Far East.

All of GFS's key locations demonstrated growth as fees in Hong Kong were up USD 2 million reflecting growth of pension assets, while fees in New York and Dublin were each up USD 1.2 million.

Background Note: Bank of Bermuda is an international financial institution that provides banking, trust, asset management, fund administration and global custody services to its corporate, private and retail clients. Founded in 1889, its global headquarters are in Bermuda, and it has offices or subsidiaries in the Cayman Islands, Cook Islands, Dublin, Guernsey, Hong Kong, Isle of Man, Jersey, London, Luxembourg, New York, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, Tokyo, Bahrain and Switzerland.

Copyright hedgeweek 2003