Julius Baer is reportedly seeking to expand its onshore wealth management business in India as part of a five-year transformation strategy that includes the tripling of client assets.
Julius Baer will embark on a five-year transformation strategy in India with the aim of expanding its onshore wealth management business. Starting this year, the bank will kick off the plan with targets that include the doubling of relationship managers and clients, the tripling of assets and extended reach to new cities.
«[W]e would be investing significantly in people, distribution, operations, infrastructure, technology, product, premises, branding and marketing,» said Rahul Malhotra, head of private banking for global India and developed markets at Julius Baer, in an interview with Indian media «Financial Express».
Not Limited to Tier-1
Currently, Julius Baer’s onshore wealth unit in India has offices in Mumbai, New Delhi, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Kolkata. As part of the plans to extend its reach, the bank will expand to more than 10 cities including Pune and Ahmedabad.
«We are seeing wealth creation in India is not limited to tier 1 cities. Wealth creation is now taking place on a pan-India basis,» Malhotra said.
Early Wealth Creation
According to Malhotra, India has macro advantages compared to many other markets that have relatively less stable governments, higher inflation and rising interest rates.
«I believe the worst is behind us, unless there is another black swan event, like another war or something like that,» he said of the near term. «We are doing this because we believe in this whole wealth creation that is taking place in India, and that, to my mind, is at its initial stages.»
In July, the bank appointed Umang Papneja as its new India chief executive, succeeding Ashish Gumashta who was named executive chairman of Julius Baer India.
