Bank of New York Mellon said revenues for wealth and asset management in the fourth quarter of 2009 were $136 billion, comapared with $119 in the same three months of 2008, the US firm said yesterday.

The banking group said income before taxes increased by 40 per cent year-on-year at its wealth management division, to $49 million in the fourth quarter of last year, and by 145 per cent over the same period at its asset management division, to $162 million.

The bank’s assets under management stood at $1.115 trillion at 31 December 2009, up 20 per cent from the end of the previous year, mainly due to the bank’s acquisition of Insight Investment Management, BNY Mellon said in a press statement.

Assets under custody and administration were $22.3 trillion at the end of last year, an increase of 10 per cent compared with the same period in 2008, and a 1 per cent increase from Q3 2009.

Asset and wealth management fees rose 5 per cent year-on-year and totalled $736 million for the fourth quarter of 2009, having been $650 million in the third quarter, and $701 million in the fourth quarter of 2008.

“We saw excellent growth in asset and wealth management revenues this quarter, which benefited from long-term flows, the contribution from Insight Investment Management, higher equity values and stronger investment performance. However, the persistent low interest rate environment globally increasingly challenged our net interest revenue and fee revenue,” said Robert Kelly, chairman and chief executive officer of BNY Mellon.

As a whole, the bank reported its Q4 2009 total revenue, excluding gains/losses on securities income, as $3.3 billion, on a non-GAAP basis, comprised of $2.58 billion in total fee revenue and $724 million in net interest revenue, both on a GAAP basis.

BNY Mellon’s Tier 1 capital ratio was 12 per cent as at 31 December 2009, rising from 11.4 per cent at the end of September 2009.