Luzerner Kantonalbank (LUKB), one of the Swiss cantonal banks, had a profit of 50.7 million Swiss francs ($50.6 million) in the first three months of 2019, an increase of 0.3 percent over the same period a year ago, the company said in a statement on Friday.

LUKB is currently investing strongly in its digital banking strategy and also added more people to its workforce, which now numbers 1,018 in full-time-equivalents – a plus of 2.6 percent year-on-year.

Assets Under Management Increase

Net interest income is what drove profit higher, with a plus of 5.8 percent year-on-year. It reached a total of 86.7 million francs. The net from the commissions business also added 3 percent to 24.1 million francs, while income from trading dropped.

LUKB generated net new money of 147 million francs and had 29.9 billion francs in assets under management at the end of the first quarter.
The bank expects full-year profit within a range of 195 million to 203 million francs.