The Royal Bank of Canada’s wealth business boasted strong performance for the three months ended October 31.

RBC today reported that it boosted wealth management net income by 55 per cent year-on-year to C$396 million ($296 million) in the fourth quarter, thanks in part to the integration of City National Bank.

The growth was also attributed to lower restructuring costs, higher earnings due to growth in average fee-based client assets, increased net interest income and higher transactional volumes reflecting favorable market conditions.

RBC announced the acquisition of California-based City National in January 2015 as part of its strategy to gain a stronger foothold in the US high net worth market. In the three months ending October 31 2016, the bank contributed C$89 million to RBC Wealth Management’s net income and C$543 million to its revenues of C$2.287 billion, which were up 38 per cent from a year ago.

Average assets under management for the division rose 18 per cent to C$578.7 billion, while average assets under administration increased five per cent to C$864.4 billion.

RBC as a whole saw earnings dip C$50 million or 2 per cent year-on-year to C$2.54 billion. Its Basel III CET1 ratio, a measure of financial strength, stood at 10.8 per cent as of the end of October 2016, up from 10.6 per cent.

“We reported record earnings of $10.5 billion in 2016, driven by the strength of our diversified business model which is focused on our clients and their success. I’m pleased with our performance, which also reflects the successful integration of City National and our commitment to cost and risk management discipline,” said Dave McKay, RBC president and chief executive, in the results statement. 

“Looking ahead, while the industry faces headwinds and an accelerating pace of change, we believe we are well positioned to deliver long-term shareholder value by leveraging innovation, our values-based culture which supports strong client relationships, and prudent capital and risk management.”