InCore Bank Annual Report 2023
Business review
In the 2023 financial year, InCore Bank AG reached a notable milestone in its efforts to further consolidate and expand the eight business areas. To cope with the growing demand for its comprehensive range of services, the Bank significantly expanded its relationship management and sales units. InCore Bank AG currently provides services in the following areas: Brokerage & Global Custody, Plug & Bank Technology Platform (powered by SOBACO), Back Office Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), Payment Services, Digital Asset Banking, Product Structuring Services and Paying Agent Services.
In the traditional Brokerage & Global Custody business, including FX operations, we once again recorded significant increases in revenue and profit. This was driven by growth in global custody asset holdings, as well as in cash holdings and the associated professional treasury. In particular, the increase in cash positions led to considerably higher trading income of CHF 7.19 million (previous year: CHF 4.26 million), representing growth of 68.7%.
In the areas of Plug & Bank Technology Platform and BPO (i.e. the outsourcing division of InCore Bank AG), we benefited from the positive developments and the trust of our clients. To continue making headway with the comprehensive expansion of our platform in the interest of our clients, we are currently working with our sister company SOBACO Solutions AG on a dual-platform strategy that will open up significant growth potential for the entire SOBACO Group in 2024 and the coming years.
In 2023, the most new clients were acquired in the Payment Services business area, which has evolved into a key strategic pillar for the Bank. To be able to serve the extra clients in this segment, the corresponding processes had to be further adapted and expanded. In order to manage the substantial growth and the associated operational risks, we focused on our organizational restructuring efforts in particular.
In Digital Asset Banking, InCore Bank’s B2B client business, we acquired further big-name clients and thereby consolidated our position as a key digital asset player in the B2B segment.
Following the successful launch of the 24/7 online trading platform in 2021, InCore Bank AG received FINMA approval for staking services in 2023 and formed a strategic partnership with SDX to establish Ethereum staking over the course of the year. With our fully integrated and future-oriented staking services, we offer staking in a secure, regulated and tax-compliant manner.
We further expanded the areas of Product Structuring Services and Paying Agent Services, streamlined our processes and continuously grew the corresponding team to continue exploiting growth potential in these areas as well.
Despite significant market corrections, assets under custody (AuC) were maintained at CHF 11.5 billion (previous year: CHF 11.4 billion) and gross revenue increased by 22.4%. The result from commission business and services rose by 4.2% to CHF 23.71 million (previous year: CHF 22.76 million). After the negative interest rate cycle came to an end, a profit of CHF 3.35 million was generated in the interest business (previous year: CHF 0.89 million).
To continue supporting the significant growth of our client base, the Client Relationship & Sales Team at InCore Bank AG was also expanded in line with the necessary organizational changes. It comprised 14 members at the end of 2023 and plays a key role in the further development and expansion of the Bank’s business activities.
As a consequence of the positive developments across the different business areas, personnel costs increased by 31.4% to CHF 13.47 million (previous year: CHF 10.25 million). The number of employees rose from 64 to 79 in 2023. The headcount is expected to increase further in 2024.
The expansion and business growth caused administrative expenses to increase by 21.3% to CHF 15.49 million (previous year: CHF 12.77 million). Net profit for the 2023 financial year came in at CHF 5.28 million (previous year: CHF 3.77 million), representing a significant increase of 39.9% compared to 2022. This outstanding result reflects our market expansion and business optimization efforts and is even more impressive in light of the market corrections and the reorganisations that were needed.
Outlook
For the coming financial year, InCore Bank AG plans to continue systematically expanding its business areas as a full-service B2B transaction bank and gearing the company up for further growth. The pipeline for new clients is robust, with strong interest in the area of Payment Services in particular.
In addition, there are various promising prospects for our services in the areas of BPO, Plug & Bank Technology Platform, and Brokerage & Global Custody. The consistent expansion of the Client Relationship & Sales Team, as well as the implementation of the dual-platform strategy in the technical area, mean we can expect the client base to keep on growing.
At present, InCore Bank AG is working on strategic realignments that will enhance the product range and banking services and are focused on the future needs of our clients.
In addition, there are plans for some group-wide strategic changes that will put InCore Bank AG on course for further growth.
With our targeted expansion and continuous focus on growth, we have a positive outlook and expect the company to continue performing well in the coming year.
Peter Haist
Chairman of the Board of Directors
Mark Dambacher
CEO
Download PDF:
InCore Bank Annual Report 2023 (EN)
InCore Geschäftsbericht 2023 (DE)
