All articles by PBI Editorial
PBI Editorial
US clients deserted by top private banks
Private banks are turning their backs on US clients in a knee-jerk reaction to regulatory pressure being placed on UBS, according to the former head of Citis US expatriate business. James Sellon, who now heads Maseco, a London-based wealth manager specialising in services for US clients, alongside Joshua Matthews, says the business is taking in scores of millions of pounds a month from new clients.
New life structure to separate client assets
(Free) Wealth manager NewPEL Group is to make use of a new legal structure, recently introduced by the EU, which allows a wide range of asset classes to be included in life products. The business has been granted a license by the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission, which has taken an early lead in supporting the development of the structure, called Protected Cell Companies (PCC). The main benefit PCCs offer clients is asset protection
Top 10 lost $2trn AuM in 2008
The worlds 10 largest wealth managers lost $2.19 trillion in assets under management in 2008, equivalent to a 24.6 percent decline in total AuM.
No endgame despite concessions
Switzerlands decision to ease its banking secrecy rules is unlikely to placate its international counterparts for long, with more political pressure on the country expected, particularly in the US But the head of the Swiss Private Bankers Association says the country is used to being in the firing line.
Private banks take SFO lead
Private banks have jumped ahead of asset managers and investment banks to become the service provider of choice for European single family offices. They were named as one of the main external financial service providers by 57 percent of 40 single family offices (SFOs) surveyed, up from 36 percent last year.
Subscribe to our Newsletter
Get industry leading news, data and analysis delivered to your inbox
Barclays Wealth expands in LatAm
Barclays Wealth has placed private banking veteran Robert Lynch in charge of credit structuring in the Americas as it expands its wealth offering in the region.
Signs UBS may have turned the corner
It attracted about CHF3.4 billion ($2.9 billion) of net new money in wealth management in January after seeing client investments flood out in 2008. Earnings at its key Wealth Management International & Switzerland business totalled CHF4.5 billion for 2008.
Local banks play on foreigners’ woes
PBI spoke to regional private banking heads at UBS, HSBC, Santander, Ita-Unibanco and BBVA to gauge the state of the market.
Regaining client confidence is key in A-P
A recent VRLPBI breakfast briefing in Hong Kong focused on what customers want from their bankers and financial advisers as Asian markets deteriorate in tandem with the West Given the high-profile saga and customer outrage from nearly 30,000 retail investors in Singapore and Hong Kong who invested and lost $2 billion in Lehman-backed structured notes, client confidence has been a thorny issue for private bankers and wealth managers in the Asia-Pacific region.