Julius Baer's CEO sees developments in the Swiss financial industry as fundamentally positive. However, Philipp Rickenbacher warns against jumping to conclusions on regulation at a conference in Zurich.

Julius Baer CEO Philipp Rickenbacher again described the strategic growth path on which he sees the Zurich-based private banking group. Despite all the uncertainties and changes, he expects further organic growth.

It's a good time to be a wealth manager, observed Rickenbacher in an interview with «Reuters» journalist Elisa Martinuzzi at an event in Zurich hosted by London-based stock exchange operator LSEG and attended by finews.asia.

No Quick Fixes

That the UBS takeover of Credit Suisse was without distortions or market swings speaks to the strength of Switzerland and the trust that people have in the financial industry.

«The strength of the Swiss banks, of the Swiss economy, of the Swiss political system [...] I think this is the foundation to be the preeminent number one financial place for cross border wealth management,» he said.

But the aftermath of the crisis isn't the time for hasty decisions. He called for transparent and thorough analysis, and no shooting from the hip in addressing banking regulation.

Hoping for the PUK

The report of an expert group on bank stability is only one step in the process, with the Parliamentary Investigation Commission (PUK) also contributing.

However, Rickenbacher declined to take a clear position on the question of whether the new UBS was too big for Switzerland, saying it depends on what strategy it pursues, noting that a large international bank is very important for the country and its companies.

Security Still Lacking

Looking at the current market environment, there are several uncertainties, he said. Among them are interest rates, the economies in the US and Europe, and geopolitics. While interest rates are fundamental to the market environment, private clients always lag behind developments, but a rethinking is taking place. Clients would hold more cash and look for interest-rate opportunities.

The question is how quickly customers will put the money back into the financial markets, Rickenbacher said, and customer behavior won't change without external factors. Now isn't the time for betting, but rather for cautious navigation, he added.

Up to 200 New Employees

Rickenbacher confirmed the company's familiar strategy contours. In Asia, Julius Baer is well positioned with its Singapore and Hong Kong locations, and a view to the offshore business with China, although a significant expansion into mainland China isn't planned. This year, he expects that up to 200 new employees will be recruited on a gross basis.

In addition, the focus remains on serving investors over the generations for the long term. Generational change often goes more smoothly than many expect, with not all assets going from 80-year-olds directly to Generation Z; there are lots of heirs in their sixties as well, he said.

The Crux of AI

Julius Baer is taking a close look at evolving technology. There's potential for artificial intelligence (AI), but it won't be a short-term linear development. There's a tendency to overestimate the possibilities of new technology in the short term and underestimate for the long term, he said.