Julius Baer has grown by leaps and bounds in Singapore and Hong Kong in recent years. The Swiss private bank is now pushing deeper into the region to seek growth. Where?
Zurich-based private bank Julius Baer calls Asia its second home market, after Switzerland. If Julius Baer originally was a latecomer to Asia, its expansion there has been rapid: roughly one-quarter of the Zurich-based private bank's assets are now managed in Asia.
So what is next for the Swiss bank in Asia?
Julius Baer wants to win market share off rivals, CEO Boris Collardi told Swiss daily «Tagesanzeiger» (in German). Specifically, the bank can do better in Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines, Collardi says – where a middle segment of wealth is slowly emerging.
«Not Many Have 5 Million Francs»
«Today, most of our clients have more than 20 million Swiss francs in total wealth, but not many have 5 million francs. This will soon change, making the markets there more interesting for us,» Collardi told the paper.
Rival Swiss banks have also pushed aggressively into the wider region, most notably Lombard Odier and Credit Suisse in Thailand, which employs roughly a dozen private bankers in Bangkok.
Asked about taking on potential legal troubles along with new business, Collardi emphasized that « there is no quick profit, it doesn't make sense to hunt the fast money.»
