Dirk Klee, the operating head of UBS' private bank who was unceremoniously shunted aside in a revamp earlier this year, has resurfaced at a British rival.
He was part of UBS' top private banking management until January, when he was sacrificed in a mega-merger with the Swiss bank's U.S. brokerage. Now, Barclays has snapped up Dirk Klee as its head of savings, wealth and investments in the U.K., the British bank said in a statement on Wednesday.
The German-born banker was instrumental in getting the Swiss giant's wealth arm into fighting digital shape: Klee was the public face behind UBS unifying its disparate wealth platforms. The $1 billion technology project is meant to lower spending at the unit by nearly that much in coming years.
Passion for Client Satisfaction
«Dirk Klee has a strong background in wealth management and his passion for client satisfaction, digitization and people mean that he will be a significant asset to our business,» the London-based bank said.
At Barclays, Klee replaces Dena Brumpton, a well-known U.K. private banker who joined Barclays just three years ago. She will leave before Klee joins in September, Barclays said.
Anything But Smooth
Prior to joining UBS five years ago, Klee ran Blackrock in Germany. In January, he lost out to UBS veteran Reto Wangler after the Swiss bank joined up its private bank with its U.S.-based brokerage arm, formerly known as Paine Webber.
The move, met with skepticism by investors, has been anything but smooth, due in part to the singular nature of the U.S. arm compared to UBS' operations in Asia, Latin America, and Europe.
