Investec Group reported a pre-provision operating profit of £1.039 billion for the financial year ended 31 March 2025, marking the first time the specialist bank and asset manager has breached the £1 billion threshold on that measure. The result represented a 7.8% increase on the prior year and was accompanied by revenues of £2,190.5 million, up 5% year-on-year.
The group announced a share buyback of about R2.5 billion (c.£100 million), to be executed over the next twelve months, alongside the results. Investec, which is listed on both the London Stock Exchange and the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, operates under a dual-listed companies structure.
EARNINGS METRICS
Return on equity for the year came in at 13.9%, a level the group's management characterised as consistent with its medium-term financial targets. Adjusted earnings per share reached 79.1 pence, an increase of 1.3% compared with the prior year. The group said its CET1 capital ratio remained strong, providing a solid buffer above regulatory minimums and supporting both the dividend and the buyback.
Investec operates as a specialist institution focused on high-net-worth and professional clients in its private banking division and providing wealth management through its South African Wealth & Investment business and its 41.25% stake in Rathbones in the UK.
The Southern African business was a key driver, with pre-provision adjusted operating profit in Southern Africa Specialist Banking up 12.2% to R10.5 billion.
STRATEGIC PRIORITIES
The group said it expected to continue executing against its strategic priorities in the year ahead, with building a corporate mid-market transactional banking franchise and enhancing its private client offering identified as its key growth initiatives. Management said the group had completed its strategy to simplify and focus the business and expects to generate about 200 basis points of incremental returns over the next five years.