It's been a year since Boris Collardi came to EFG International by taking a stake in the firm and joining the board. It is now on a relationship manager hiring spree.

Private bank EFG International has either hired or made offers to some 50 client relationship officers (CROs), with plans to hire more to expand its wealth management business, according to a first quarter update on its business ahead of its annual general meeting in Zurich today. 

The Geneva-based institution said that its «unique business model continues to attract senior CROs and teams with sizable portfolios.»

«We have also seen strong momentum in hiring and we expect this to further accelerate our growth in the coming months,» said CEO Giorgio Pradelli.

One Year for Boris Collardi

About a year ago, former Pictet partner Boris Collardi joined EFG, taking a 3.6 percent stake in the company and ascending to the board later that year. His extensive experience and contacts are likely to be something that will help the new relationship managers it is bringing aboard.

If he wants EFG to catch up to his former employer in terms of assets under management, there is some work to be done. At the end of last year, Pictet has 612 billion Swiss francs ($684 billion) under management, whereas EFG had 143.1 billion francs. 

That figure increased slightly to about 145 billion francs at the end of the first quarter, according to the update released by EFG today. The amount «reflects a subdued contribution from net new assets and positive market performance.» Still, asset inflows early in the year were muted because of the economic environment, turmoil in the global banking sector, and volatile markets. 

What should encourage the new relationship managers is what EFG said is a net new asset pipeline that is «currently strong», with net new assets expected to improve gradually in the coming months and return to a more normalized level. 

Record Profit

For the first three months of the year, EFG achieved a record net profit of over 90 million Swiss francs, after a 202.4 million profit for all of last year.

«Our record operating performance in the first three months of 2023 reflects the continued successful execution of our strategy that focuses on sustaining profitable growth and achieving scale,» Pradelli added.

De-Risking Life Insurance

The firm said it made progress in de-risking its life insurance portfolio. Last month, EFG reached a settlement with life insurer John Hancock on disputed premium increases for life insurance policies. In financial terms, this legal case is the smallest of the three cases still pending at the end of last year.