Vontobel, the Swiss bank and asset manager, saw profits soar last year from Sfr2m (€1.29m) to Sfr101.7m driven by a substantial increase in sales of derivatives which put the investment bank back in the black. Assets under management rose from Sfr45.4 to Sfr49.4bn.

Last year Vontobel restructured its operations into three units: private banking, investment banking and asset management and hired Giuseppe Benelli from Swiss Re as the firm's new chief investment officer.