All articles by Verdict Staff
Verdict Staff
Coutts appoints senior private banker, financial planner as part of series of strategic
Coutts & Co in Manchester announces the appointment of James Bardner and Neil Ferguson. James is appointed as a Senior Private Banker in Manchester. He brings more than 25 years investment and wealth management experience. He joins from Barclays Wealth where he was a Vice President in Manchester. Prior to this, he managed the Manchester office of Gerrard Investment Management Ltd.
Chinese private banks in pole position
Chinese private banks have seized the opportunity provided by the financial crisis to become the preferred choice of high net worth individuals (HNWIs) at the expense of foreign players. The financial crisis has hardened the attitudes of Chinese HNWIs towards foreign banks, according to Bain & Companys 2011 China Private Wealth Study. In 2009 the study noted that the financial crisis had impacted the competitive landscape of private banking in China when most HNWIs would still consider selecting foreign banks, although they had become more cautious.
Chinese HNW prefer local private banks: Bain
New research suggests the vast majority of Chinas high net worth individuals (HNWIs) prefer to use domestic banks as one of their wealth management institutions, with less than 40% choosing foreign banks. Bain & Companys 2011 China Private Wealth Study found 85% of HNWIs who use financial institutions for wealth management now select domestic banks above foreign institutions
Lloyds TSB and UBS hit by staff walkouts
In a sudden burst of staff defections among big European private banks, Lloyds TSB Private Bank in Geneva has been hit by a walkout of about 10 staff shortly after the bank itself laid off some 15 personnel in the Swiss centre.
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OCBC Group reports profit of S$513 million in Q3
Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited (OCBC Bank) reported a net profit of S$513 million for the third quarter of 2011 (3Q11). The Groups core customer-related businesses continued to grow, as reflected in the growth of net interest income, fee income and insurance earnings from Great Eastern Holdings (GEH) Participating and investment linked funds. The volatility of the financial markets in 3Q11 had an adverse impact on trading income at OCBC Bank and insurance profits from GEHs Non-participating fund1, resulting in a 10% decline in the Groups net profit from S$570 million a year ago.
SocGen advisory board to lead ?150bn AuM push
Socit Gnrale Private Bank has set up a new executive committee as part of its two-stage growth strategy, Ambition 2015, aimed at almost doubling assets under management to 150bn ($203bn) in the next five years. Socit Gnrale Private Banks global chief executive Daniel Truchi will lead the six-member supervisory committee that will direct the banks strategy and global development and be positioned across key international locations. A spokesman for the bank confirmed Truchis role would remain unchanged, with the advisory board adding more structural support for the global chief.
Gap between active and passive returns set to grow
The head of Merrill Lynchs (ML) EMEA Portfolio Management division Simon Miles predicts the differentiation between active and passive wealth managers will increase in 2011 as the investment space returns to a more normal investment climate Now, because things are starting to settle down, the ability of managers to identify a good company versus a bad company is going to start to emerge, he said.
Goldman Sachs gives HNW clients chance to buy Facebook stock
Goldman Sachs is rumoured to have bought a $450m stake in Facebook, to give its high net worth clients access to stakes in the highly-lucrative social networking site. Facebook is not a public company, which makes the deal even more attractive for the banks private wealth clients because they would otherwise not be able to buy stakes in Facebook.
SEB launches offshore Chinese Yuan services
SEB has launched a set of services in offshore Chinese Yuan (CNH) for cash management, trade finance and foreign exchange.