Barclays has reported a pre-tax profit of £5.2bn in the six months to 30 June, increasing by 23% year-on-year and beating expectations.

The bank's net interest income totalled £7bn in this period, which was also ahead of forecasts, while its group income increased by 14% year-on-year to £7.2bn.

In H1, Barclays’ total operational expenses jumped by 5% to £8.6bn, which it said reflected its recent Tesco Bank acquisition costs, further investment spend and business growth, inflation and the £50m expenses for the employee share grant.

This was partially offset by £350m of cost efficiency savings.

Group chief executive at Barclays, C. S. Venkatakrishnan, said: "We remain on track to achieve the objectives of our three-year plan, delivering structurally higher and more stable returns for our investors. At the mid-point of the plan, with six quarters of consistent execution, we have achieved over half of the c.£30bn planned UK risk weighted assets growth, half of the target income growth and realised two-thirds of the £2bn planned gross cost efficiency savings.

“In Q225 we delivered return on tangible equity (RoTE) of 12.3%; year-on-year income grew by 14% and profit before tax by 28%. Earnings per share grew by 41% reflecting profit growth and the impact of share buybacks, with tangible net asset value per share growth of 13%."

In its outlook for the year, Barclays said it expects an 11% RoTE, while it predicted a "progressive increase in total capital versus 2024".

In its H1 results, the group laid out its expectations for 2026, which includes a RoTE of more than 12%. It also announced plans to return at least £10bn of capital to shareholders between 2024 and 2026 through dividends and buybacks.

In line with these targets, Barclays launched a new £1bn share buyback scheme, along with a first half dividend valued at 3 pence per share, which is up from 2.9 pence in the same period last year.

Head of investment at interactive investor, Victoria Scholar, stated that the group’s returns to investors was an "encouraging sign".

She concluded: "Halfway through its three-year turnaround, Barclays remains on track to achieve its objectives. Barclays’ financial strength and its geographical and business diversity have been key drivers of the group’s strong share price showing, which has risen by over a third this year already, outperforming the FTSE 100 which is up by around 10%.

"Analysts are generally upbeat towards the stock, with 13 buy recommendations, four holds and no sells. This is a much more positive outlook than for rival Lloyds, which is a consensus hold."

---