The FTSE 100 bank reported total income of £8.2 billion for the three months to 31 March 2026, up 6% year-on-year and slightly ahead of consensus expectations of £8.1bn. Profit before tax rose 3% to £2.8bn, while attributable profit increased to £1.9bn from £1.86bn a year earlier.

Earnings per share grew 8% to 14.1p, and return on tangible equity (RoTE) came in at 13.5%, down from 14.0% in the same period last year but comfortably above the bank’s 2026 target of greater than 12%. All five operating divisions delivered double-digit returns.

Group chief executive CS Venkatakrishnan said Barclays had delivered “another solid quarter”, noting that the result was achieved “despite a one-off charge and impairments”.

Noting “geopolitical uncertainty and increasingly cautious consumer behaviour”, Zoe Gillespie, senior director, head of office for Glasgow, RBC Brewin Dolphin, said the bank “delivered a strong first quarter”.

Top-line income growth was described as broad-based, with the investment bank generating more than £4bn of quarterly income for the first time. The cost-to-income ratio improved to 56% from 57%, supported by roughly £150m of gross cost efficiency savings. “A notable highlight and in line with expectations,” Ms Gillespie added. “Today’s results are the first steps in delivering their 2026 targets.”

Investment bank income rose 4% to £4.03bn, with Global Markets up 6% to £2.83bn. Equities income jumped 16% to £1.12bn, reflecting growth in Prime Financing and elevated derivatives volatility, while FICC was broadly stable at £1.72bn.

Banking fees and underwriting climbed 17% to £754m, led by Advisory income up 78% to £255m and Equity Capital Markets up 31% to £92m.

The division’s RoTE was 15.0%, down from 16.2% a year earlier, weighed down by a £228m single-name impairment relating to the failure of MFS, the specialist bridging and buy-to-let lender that collapsed amid fraud allegations and is now subject to a Financial Conduct Authority investigation.

Group credit impairment charges climbed to £823m from £643m a year earlier, pushing the loan loss rate up to 74 basis points from 61bps. The bank said the MFS charge alone added around 20bps to the group rate, and as a result it expects the full-year 2026 loan loss rate to be around the top of its 50-60bps through-the-cycle range.

Mr Venkatakrishnan said the failures of MFS and, last year, US sub-prime auto lender Tricolor pointed to “the importance of strong financial controls at borrowers and the difficulty ex-ante of identifying fraud”, adding that Barclays was now “constraining lending to certain structured finance counterparties who operate more vulnerable business models”.

Barclays UK delivered a 19.7% RoTE, with income up 9% to £2.26bn as net interest income rose 9% to £1.99bn and the net interest margin widened to 3.72%. UK Corporate Bank income rose 10% to £530m and RoTE jumped to 19.9% from 17.1%.

The US Consumer Bank was a notable bright spot, with income up 14% to £983m, RoTE soaring to 18.8% from 4.5%, and net interest margin expanding to 12.76% from 10.53%. Private Bank and Wealth Management income was broadly flat at £347m, though RoTE slipped to 25.5% from 34.5% on higher investment costs and a smaller impairment release.

The bank’s head office opted to add a further £105m to its provision for the UK motor finance redress scheme, taking the total set aside to £430m, after the FCA published its final rules in March. Barclays said it had decided not to challenge the rules in the interests of a swift resolution, but “strongly disagrees with aspects which require financial redress even where customers suffered no demonstrable financial harm”. It cautioned that at least one legal challenge to the FCA’s rules is likely.

The CET1 capital ratio stood at 14.1% at the end of March, down from 14.3% at year-end, with risk-weighted assets rising to £364.5bn from £356.8bn on the back of UK lending growth and increased Global Markets activity. Adjusted for the newly announced £500m share buyback, the pro-forma CET1 ratio falls to 13.9%, at the top end of the 13-14% target range. Tangible net asset value per share eased to 405p from 409p, although it was 9% higher year-on-year.

Barclays announced its intention to launch the £500m buyback once the existing £1bn programme from full-year 2025 results is completed. The bank reiterated all 2026 and 2028 financial targets, including total income of around £31bn this year, group net interest income excluding the investment bank and Head Office of more than £13.5bn, and RoTE of greater than 14% by 2028.

Group finance director Anna Cross said businesses and consumers remained in “good shape” with no broad credit deterioration, although consumers had begun prioritising essential spending and repaying credit card debt. Mr Venkatakrishnan warned that prolonged Middle East tensions and higher oil prices could ultimately weigh on the economy, and pointed to a recent uptick in UK inflation.