«Private Banker» of the year in Asia – the award is just the icing on the cake for a man whose career path is on the ascent: Francesco de Ferrari, private-banking boss of Credit Suisse in Asia.
The award by the «Asian Private Banker» is much coveted: The financial news portal chose a man who has big plans for his employer Credit Suisse in 2016: Francesco de Ferrari. His bank incidentally raked in the honor as «Best Private Bank – Asia» to complement the award accredited to the boss.
In October, CS Chief Executive Tidjane Thiam untied the hands of his managers in Asia, giving them more room for maneuver and capital, when he announced his new strategy for Switzerland's second-biggest bank.
More Autonomy
Helman Sitohand, head of the Asia Pacific unit of CS, is now largely independent and this had the effect that top managers such as de Ferrari now enjoy more autonomy and can count on quicker decision making.
And decisions can be expected in the foreseeable future: the owners of CS have given their chief executive the brief to expand in the region. Private banking is a top priority, and hence the time is right for de Ferrari to shine.
Big Targets
The 45-year old knows exactly what he wants to do: In June 2015 he let it be known that he wanted to acquire a large private bank, an institute that would add at least 20 billion francs in assets under management to his portfolio.
The CS private bank needs something big to get closer to the top in Asia. The bank ranks third behind UBS and Citigroup measured by assets under management in the region. Award as best private bank or not.
