Switzerland's largest bank is about to enter into a joint venture with Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank. The new firm will provide UBS wealth management services in Japan.
UBS is planning on launching a joint venture with Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank (SMTB). The agreement may come as soon as Friday, UBS chief executive Sergio Ermotti told German daily «Handelsblatt.»
The Swiss bank will hold a majority stake in the joint venture that will provide UBS wealth management services to SMTB clients. The agreement may become a pilot for similar agreements with other banks.
The two banks are planning to go live with the service later this year. One of the key requirements is the need to get the conservative Japanese consumers to take to the new service. British newspaper «Financial Times» (behind paywall) said that Japanese consumers kept most of their assets away from traditional financial products.
SMTP has about 2.6 trillion francs in assets under management and is Japan's largest banking trust.
