Asia is a very important growth market for the «new» UBS. The Swiss financial giant wants to retain Credit Suisse's top talent in the region.
Credit Suisse, recently acquired by UBS, traditionally had a strong presence in Asia and is best known for its business managing the assets of wealthy Asians. The bank has lost several top managers and talent in Asia in recent months, an exodus UBS now wants to stop.
Hong Kong Townhall
To ensure this, UBS has promised Credit Suisse asset management staff continued employment in Asia, according to a «Bloomberg» (behind paywall) report citing sources.
Iqbal Khan and Francesco De Ferrari, UBS and Credit Suisse's respective heads of wealth management, spoke to Asia Pacific employees via a town hall in Hong Kong on Friday, according to the sources. Khan is focused on stabilizing the Credit Suisse Asia team and building trust and is well placed to do so. Before joining UBS in 2019, he headed international wealth management at Credit Suisse, responsible for the Americas and the Middle East.
Details Unknown
Khan reportedly said employees in Credit Suisse's wealth management business would receive retention plans as early as next week, which aims to stop more top talent from leaving. According to the report, some of the departed bankers managed at least one billion dollars of client assets and could take up to 60 percent of the funds they manage.
It is not known what the details of the retention plans are. It is also unclear how many bankers will receive offers and whether they will apply to other regions.
Credit Suisse and UBS declined to comment.
