Jenkins, who is fond of talking about turning Barclays into the "go to" bank, shed little fresh light on the so-called "transform" programme he is masterminding to repair the battered reputation of the bank.
The former head of the retail bank, Jenkins repeated the goals that lie behind the transform programme, which also spell out the motto "transform": t(urnaround), r(eturn) a(cceptable) n(umbers) and s(ustain) for(ward) m(omentum).
Delivering his first set of results since replacing Diamond, who quit following the Libor rigging scandal, Jenkins acknowledged Barclays had "much to do to restore trust among stakeholders".
Unlike the situation with Libor, where Barclays admitted errors that led to a record £290m fine, he was adamant the bank would fight any fine slapped on it by the US Federal Energy Regulation Commission.
He has given himself until February to complete the transform programme which also includes the ethics review – codenamed Project Mango – being undertaken by Rich Ricci, the remaining head of the investment bank.
Jenkins, though, repeated that the transform programme will project his vision for the future of the bank. It also has lawyer Anthony Salz conducting a group-wide review of the bank's culture.
The new chief executive is promising to assess businesses not only on the profits they make but also on the impact they have on the bank's reputation. Businesses involved in tax planning, for instance, are expected to be shut down.
On Wednesday, he attempted to demonstrate that the bank is taking the axe to bonuses – a source of friction in the relationship with shareholders and the public. A year ago, Barclays put aside 46% of investment banking revenue to pay bonuses. So far this year this has fallen to 39%.
"We don't intend to stop there [and will] drive that ratio down over time," Jenkins said. Even so, the bank concedes it intends to remain competitive and be in the "top quartile" when it comes to payouts.
He has already scaled back the targets set by Diamond for return on equity – a measure closely watched by shareholders – from 13% to around 11.5%.
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2010
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