Departing UBS chief executive Sergio Ermotti signed off his tenure by doubling profits in the third quarter, as its investment bank surged by 268% on the back of equity advisory revenues and strong sales and trading activity.

The Swiss bank kicked off a European bank earnings season by following many of its Wall Street rivals — beating market expectations as its investment bank shined. Its profits of $2.1bn were up by 99% on the previous year, well ahead of the $1.6bn anticipated by the 22 analysts that make up its consensus numbers.