Britain’s oldest private bank reported a fall in profit before tax to £63.7m for the year to 31 March 2025, blaming a Bank Rate cut and customers shifting into higher‑paying alternatives even as deposits and lending grew.
C. Hoare & Co, Britain’s oldest private bank, reported a marked fall in profits for the year to 31 March 2025 and warned that an increasingly uncertain global environment has left the UK outlook “increasingly subdued.” According to the bank’s audited financial report, profit before tax dropped to £63.7 million from £80.8 million a year earlier, while the chair’s foreword highlighted both lower interest rates and renewed trade tensions as headwinds. The bank’s public filings frame the decline as a consequence of external macroeconomic shifts rather than a deterioration in its core lending franchise.
The audited accounts set out the scale of the change: total income fell to £249.4 million from £271.7 million, a contraction the bank attributed to a combination of a lower short‑term policy rate and customers reallocating funds into higher‑paying alternatives. Industry coverage corroborated the headline fall in pre‑tax profit and noted the same income drivers, while emphasising that the bank continues to serve a wealthy, largely UK‑based client base including long‑standing landed families.
C. Hoare & Co explicitly linked part of the revenue squeeze to the shift in Bank Rate during the reporting period. The Bank of England’s minutes for the meeting ending 5 February 2025 record a 0.25 percentage‑point cut in Bank Rate to 4.5 per cent, a move the bank says reduced the margin earned on short‑term loan assets. The annual report also describes customers moving into higher‑paying deposit and investment options as a pressure on traditional net interest income.
Despite the fall in earnings, the balance sheet showed expansion in core volumes. Customer deposits rose by around 5.4 per cent to £6,427 million and lending increased by some 6.5 per cent to £2,352 million over the year, figures disclosed in the financial statements and noted by trade press. The bank’s reporting frames this as evidence of continuing client trust and franchise resilience even as returns on those balances were compressed.
Global trade frictions also feature prominently in the bank’s assessment of the outlook. The annual report characterises recent US tariff announcements as creating “unprecedented disruption” to supply chains and says it is “futile” to try to predict the final scale of levies on imports — language that signals caution about the knock‑on effects for UK growth. Independent reporting on corporate responses to tariff volatility has documented how manufacturers and other firms are investing in supply‑chain intelligence and artificial intelligence tools to manage day‑to‑day risk, underscoring the broader economic adjustment that the bank referenced.
C. Hoare & Co remains entirely family‑owned and structured on an unlimited liability basis, a fact reiterated on the bank’s governance pages and in its regulatory disclosures. The partners’ roster includes members of the Hoare family alongside non‑executive directors and senior management, and the bank emphasises conservative risk management, capital strength and continuity of service as central to its strategy.
In his chair’s foreword to the annual report, Lord Nick Macpherson — the bank’s chairman and a former Treasury permanent secretary — warned that the UK has “yet to break out of its low productivity‑low growth cycle”, and characterised the year ahead as uncertain. The report nevertheless stresses the bank’s strategic priorities of resilience, capital adequacy and customer service continuity, presenting the profit decline as a cyclical responsiveness to policy and market moves rather than a structural failing.
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Source: Noah Wire Services
- https://www.dailymail.co.uk/money/markets/article-15006825/Profits-plunge-C-Hoare-Britains-oldest-bank.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490 – Please view link – unable to able to access data
- https://www.hoaresbank.co.uk/files/2025-07/Financial_Report_2025.pdf – C. Hoare & Co’s Annual Report for the year ended 31 March 2025 presents audited financial statements and a chair’s foreword. Profit before tax is reported at £63.7 million (2023/24: £80.8 million) and total income at £249.4 million (2023/24: £271.7 million). Customer deposits are shown at £6,427 million and lending balances at £2,352 million. The report cites lower short-term interest rates and customers shifting to higher-paying alternatives as drivers of reduced income. It references increased global uncertainty and US tariff announcements. The document also summarises governance, capital ratios and the bank’s history since 1672. It explains strategic priorities, resilience and customer service continuity.
- https://www.hoaresbank.co.uk/financial-reports – The C. Hoare & Co financial reports page hosts the bank’s audited annual and other regulatory reports, including the Financial Report 2025 available as a PDF download. It confirms the bank remains entirely Hoare family owned on an unlimited liability basis and highlights conservative risk management, capital strength and regulatory disclosures such as Pillar 3 statements. The page links to prior annual reports, impact and gender pay reports and provides contact details for enquiries. It serves as the primary source for the bank’s statutory accounts, governance statements and downloadable documents used by journalists, analysts and customers seeking financial information resources.
- https://www.hoaresbank.co.uk/our-people – The C. Hoare & Co ‘Our People’ page lists senior leadership, partners and advisers and confirms the bank’s continuous family ownership since its founding by Sir Richard Hoare in 1672. It names individual partners including Venetia Hoare and others from the twelfth generation, together with non‑executive directors and the chairman, Lord Macpherson of Earl’s Court. The page emphasises partners’ active stewardship, unlimited liability structure and hands‑on engagement with customers. It also sets out the management team and roles such as the chief executive. The page is a definitive source for confirming the bank’s family ownership and partner composition and history.
- https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/monetary-policy-summary-and-minutes/2025/february-2025 – The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee minutes for the meeting ending 5 February 2025 record the decision to reduce Bank Rate by 0.25 percentage points to 4.5 per cent, by a majority of seven to two. The publication explains the committee’s assessment of disinflation progress, labour market easing and risks to medium‑term inflation, and sets out projections for growth and CPI inflation. It gives the immediate policy decision, voting split and rationale for withdrawing some policy restraint while keeping monetary policy restrictive. The document is the official record of the BoE’s February 2025 interest‑rate decision and accompanying analysis thereof.
- https://www.reuters.com/business/just-time-manufacturers-turn-ai-weather-tariff-storm-2025-08-13/ – Reuters reports on how manufacturers are turning to artificial intelligence and data tools to manage supply‑chain uncertainty amid fluctuating tariffs. The article profiles firms that are keeping inventories lean while using AI to ingest daily news, forecast risks and suggest procurement actions. It links the renewed focus on supply‑chain resilience to tariff volatility prompted by recent US tariff announcements and to other post‑pandemic shocks. Analysts and software vendors describe rising investment in generative AI for logistics and procurement, while cautioning that AI is not a panacea. The piece highlights practical examples and industry perspectives on adapting to tariff‑driven uncertainty today.
- https://www.wealthinvestmentnews.co.uk/C-Hoare-Co-reports-21-fall-in-pre-tax-profit.php – Wealth Investment News reported on C. Hoare & Co’s Annual Report for the year ended 31 March 2025, noting a 21.2 per cent fall in pre‑tax profit to £63.7 million from £80.8 million. The piece records total income declining to £249.4 million from £271.7 million and attributes the reduction largely to a lower base rate and customers moving into higher‑paying deposit alternatives. It highlights customer deposits rising by 5.4 per cent to £6.43 billion and lending increasing by 6.5 per cent to £2.35 billion. The article quotes chairman Lord Nick Macpherson on the bank’s resilient balance sheet and strategic priorities.
Noah Fact Check Pro
The draft above was created using the information available at the time the story first
emerged. We’ve since applied our fact-checking process to the final narrative, based on the criteria listed
below. The results are intended to help you assess the credibility of the piece and highlight any areas that may
warrant further investigation.
Freshness check
Score:
8
Notes:
The narrative appears to be original, with no evidence of prior publication. The Daily Mail article is dated August 16, 2025, and the referenced financial report from C. Hoare & Co. is dated July 2025. The report is accessible on the bank’s official website. ([en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C._Hoare_%26_Co?utm_source=openai)) The Daily Mail article includes a link to the bank’s financial report, indicating direct sourcing. No evidence of recycled content or republishing across low-quality sites was found.
Quotes check
Score:
9
Notes:
The article includes direct quotes from the bank’s financial report and the chair’s foreword. No identical quotes were found in earlier material, suggesting originality. The wording of the quotes matches the bank’s report, indicating accurate reporting.
Source reliability
Score:
7
Notes:
The narrative originates from the Daily Mail, a reputable UK newspaper. The article references the bank’s official financial report, enhancing credibility. However, the Daily Mail has faced criticism for sensationalism in the past, which may affect the perceived reliability.
Plausability check
Score:
8
Notes:
The claims about C. Hoare & Co.’s profit decline and the factors influencing it are plausible and align with the bank’s financial report. The article’s tone and language are consistent with financial reporting standards. No inconsistencies or suspicious elements were identified.
Overall assessment
Verdict (FAIL, OPEN, PASS): PASS
Confidence (LOW, MEDIUM, HIGH): HIGH
Summary:
The narrative is original, with no evidence of recycled content. It accurately reports on C. Hoare & Co.’s profit decline, referencing the bank’s official financial report. The Daily Mail, while reputable, has faced past criticism for sensationalism, which slightly affects the perceived reliability. Overall, the narrative is plausible and consistent with financial reporting standards.
