Standard Chartered has sold a "bundle of assets" to Banque Heritage for an undisclosed price, as the British bank continues its assets liquidation from its Swiss unit.
The move follows confirmation earlier this month from the Asia-focused Standard Chartered that it will close the Swiss private bank after failing to attract a buyer for it.
Go deeper with GlobalData
"There is obviously a smaller number of clients who didn’t want to move out of Switzerland and so [the sale to Banque Heritage] was an additional option we were looking at," a spokeswoman from Standard Chartered told PBI.
She said the two banks "have been talking for a little while" on the deal.
The assets’ acquisition is part of Heritage’s expansion plan of purchasing "select private banking assets" from other financial institutions in order to bolster its position in key markets, Heritage said in a brief statement.
Specifically, the Swiss private bank said it is set to expand his presence in emerging markets, Europe and the Middle East.
How well do you really know your competitors?
Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.
Thank you!
Your download email will arrive shortly
Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample
We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form
By GlobalDataStandard Chartered could not disclose any details on the actual class of assets sold to the Geneva-based private bank or on other firms interested in the "very little" assets left and still available to purchase.
"We have already started to move the majority of the Swiss business out of Geneva (mainly London and Dubai) and we thought we had enough booking capability in our other offshore centres and made much more sense to move the majority of our business there," she also added.
Whilst any remaining private banking business in Geneva will continue to be wound down, the bank said it will "remain committed to the Swiss market overall," although refocusing on building its corporate and institutional client business instead.
According to the bank’s website, Standard Chartered Swiss arm has 70 employees. As previously reported, the number of staff affected by the closure has been less than 50.
Earlier this year, Standard Chartered decided shut down its unprofitable institutional cash equities, equity research and equity capital markets business to cut costs and boost profits.
