VP Bank in capital markets

VP Bank communicates a true and fair picture of the Group to shareholders and other stakeholders in an open and ongoing dialogue. 

The share capital of VP Bank consists of bearer shares listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange as well as unlisted registered B shares. At the end of 2022, the market capitalisation based on all bearer shares and registered B shares amounted to CHF 580.83 million. Bearer shares and registered B shares differ in nominal value per share by a factor of 10, which is directly reflected in the price per share. In this challenging year, market capitalisation decreased by 9.1 per cent compared to the previous year. 

The number of shares issued, excluding treasury shares, remained constant in comparison with the previous year: 6,015,000 bearer shares and 6,004,167 registered B shares.

VP Bank shares got off to a positive start in the 2022 stock market year, reaching their high for the year of CHF 106 on 16 February. The Bank’s shares were also clearly outperforming the Swiss Performance Index and the Supersector Banks Index at this point in time. However, share performance fell with the start of the war in Ukraine, and the share price then remained below CHF 100. In the second half of the year, the share ranged between a price of CHF 80.2, the low reached on 14 July 2022, and CHF 90.8, with an ultimate closing price of CHF 87.8 on 31 December 2022. The share closed at an average price of CHF 91.3. Over the year, VP Bank shares dropped in value by 9.1 per cent. Taking into account the dividend payment of CHF 5.00, VP Bank generated a return of –4.3 per cent in 2022. This is roughly 13.4 per cent below the return of the Swiss Bank Index, but compared to the Swiss Performance Index, this represents an outperformance of 14.5 per cent.

In 2022, the trading volume of VP Bank shares on the SIX Swiss Exchange was 538,729 shares, or an average of 2,121 shares per day, significantly lower than the 2,711 shares per day in 2021. This reflects the generally low trading volume on the market.

VP Bank can count on three significant shareholders who hold either more than 10 per cent of the share capital and/or more than 5 per cent of the voting rights. (→ Chapter Corporate Governance, Significant Shareholders). VP Bank has around 3,207 shareholders entered in the share register in total. The largest 20 shareholders hold around 56 per cent of the issued share capital and 72 per cent of the voting rights.

VP Bank strives to maintain a constant dividend, with a goal of paying out 40 per cent to 60 per cent of Group net income to shareholders. In May 2022, VP Bank paid a dividend of CHF 5.00 per bearer share, which corresponded to a payout ratio of 60 per cent and reflects a dividend yield of 5.2 per cent in relation to the share price at the end of 2021. For May 2023, VP Bank is proposing a dividend of CHF 5.00 per bearer share, which corresponds to a dividend yield of 5.7 per cent at the end of 2022. The payout ratio is 76 per cent. On the basis of its very good capital base, VP Bank has decided to propose a dividend amount that is higher than the targeted payout ratio.

Investment experts monitor the performance of VP Bank and share their assessments and expectations with the investment community. Four analysts regularly publish reports on VP Group: Kepler Cheuvreux, Mirabaud Securities LLP, Research Partners and Zürcher Kantonalbank. 

All four analysts issued a buy/overweight recommendation at the beginning of 2022. Two of them revised this recommendation slightly during the year and now recommend “hold/market weight”.

VP Bank is one of the few private banks in Liechtenstein and Switzerland to be rated by international rating agency Standard & Poor’s. In order to ensure an accurate assessment, VP Bank maintains regular contact with S&P analysts and continuously informs them of business developments. 

In October 2022, rating agency Standard & Poor’s confirmed VP Bank’s good “A” rating (A/Negative/A–1), which is largely justified by the Bank’s very strong capitalisation, stable client and shareholder structure, and solid refinancing position.

The measures initiated in 2020 and now completed with regard to processes, duties, competencies and responsibilities bolstered VP Bank’s governance considerably. Stan­dard & Poor’s rating reports can be downloaded as a PDF file from the VP Bank website in the “Investor Relations / Ratings” section.

VP Bank Ltd placed a total of three bonds in 2015 and 2019. For information on terms, interest rates and maturities, please refer to note 26.

VP Bank’s published annual and semi-annual reports help enhance communications with institutional and private investors. These reports are complemented by the website www.vpbank.com / Investor Relations, and reports and all current information are posted online at report.vpbank.com.

The continuing development of VP Bank Group’s annual report in accordance with international trends and legal requirements is taken seriously. VP Bank Group’s Annual Report 2021 received a total of six international awards, recognising the outstanding quality of the VP Bank’s communications policy and again demonstrating its creative design prowess. VP Bank Group’s annual report was awarded number 2 in the HarbourClub and Bilanz’s Swiss Annual Report Rating in the category Value Reporting. With a superb jury comprising design experts and financial professionals, this rating is the most important in Switzerland and the largest of its kind. VP Bank was also thrilled to receive additional awards at the famous “ARC Awards” in the United States. The print edition of the Annual Report 2021 was awarded Gold and named Grand Award Winner in Best of Category Western Europe, with VP Bank prevailing among 1,656 submissions from 33 countries. The ARC Awards, the world’s largest competition held exclusively for annual reports, have been conferred in the United States for 36 years.

VP Bank also received a Gold Award for its printed report and a Platinum Award for the online version with 99 out of a possible 100 points at the 20th League of American Communications Professionals (LACP) Vision Awards in the United States, featuring around 1,000 participants from 21 countries. The printed annual report received another Gold Award at MerComm’s Galaxy Awards in the United States as well as a Bronze Award for the print report 2021 from the 19th International Business Awards of the “Stevie Awards”, also in the United States. The winners of the Stevie Awards were chosen from more than 3,700 nominations submitted by organisations from 67 countries. 

Annual reports, letters to shareholders, presentations and regulations can be viewed at www.vpbank.com / Investor Relations. Investors and stakeholders can also find current information about the latest developments on the social media platforms Twitter and LinkedIn.

At VP Bank’s 59th ordinary annual general meeting on 29 April 2022 in Vaduz, the shareholders approved all of the resolutions proposed by the Board of Directors. Payout of a dividend of CHF 5.00 per bearer share and CHF 0.50 per registered B share was approved. Shareholders were able to follow the annual general meeting via live stream on the VP Bank website. Presentations and minutes are available on the website at www.vpbank.com / Investor Relations / General meeting of shareholders.

The next ordinary annual general meeting will be held on 28 April 2023.

Michèle Schnyder

Head of Investor Relations

T +41 44 226 24 33 · investor.relations(at)vpbank.com 

www.vpbank.com / Investor Relations