All articles by Thomas McMahon
Thomas McMahon
StanChart launches unified account for NRIs
Standard Chartered has launched a new unified account aimed at making it easier for non-resident Indians (NRIs) in the UAE to access various financial products in India. The NRI 3-in-1 account is a one-stop shop for the 65% of the population of the UAE of Indian descent. The service combines non-resident bank accounts, including portfolio investment services, with demat accounts (which allow Indian citizens to trade in listed stocks in electronic form rather than paper) and brokerage accounts
Asian private banks overlook key $1-5m segment
Private banks in Asia are overlooking key segments while they chase ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWIs) and are missing out on a potential $25bn each year as a consequence, according to research from global consultancy Oliver Wyman. The core wealth segment, those with $1-5m in investable assets, is under-served in the eight Asian countries examined, the research said. There is $11.4trn in unmanaged wealth in the region with around $3trn of that in the core wealth segment
Northern Trust consolidates UHNW business
Northern Trust has consolidated management of its divisions serving UHNW clients and family offices in the US and EMEA regions, bringing them together in a new global family and private investment offices group.
Tech boom changing face of global UHNW wealth
The growing global technology sector is a game changer for family involvement and the way fortunes are founded and managed, according to a report from Forbes Insight and Socit Gnrale Private Banking. The Global Wealth and Family Ties report says individually-run fortunes are growing faster, and while 58% of fortunes in all sectors as a whole are managed by individuals, in the tech sector this rises to 76%.
Swiss franc strength hits profits at BSI
BSI Group, the private bank belonging to the Generali insurance group, saw net new money inflows rise by 8.8% to CHF6.7bn ($7.41bn) last year, although profits dropped substantially. The bank said the strength of the Swiss franc, low interest rates and global economic uncertainty had caused gross profit to fall to CHF165.6m from CHF203.8m in 2010, a drop of 18.7%
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London and New York to remain top for 10 years
Global wealth continues to shift to Asia, but London and New York are likely to remain the most important cities for HNWIs for another 10 years, according to a report by Citi Private Bank and estate agents Knight Frank. The Wealth Report says that the Asia-Pacific (the region covering China, SE Asia and Japan) now has more centa-millionaires (those with over $100m in assets) than North America or Western Europe. Citi surveyed its wealth advisers and Knight Franks property specialists around the world, with respondents in each region selecting either London or New York as the most important
Barclays opens new client experience portal
The Little Book of Wonders offers 16 lifestyle sections such as sport, philanthropy, literature and style and will offer events such as an evening at Sir Terence Conrans apartment hearing about commissioning a dream home. Barclays says that the service will give clients ideas, presenting them with a calendar of events available on certain dates that they will be able to choose from.
FSA slaps Coutts with record £8.75m fine
Coutts has been slapped with its biggest ever fine from the UKs Financial Services Authority (FSA) for serious, systemic shortcomings in its systems on anti-money-laundering (AML) and money obtained through corruption between 2007 to 2010. The FSA fined the UK private banking arm of Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) £8.75m ($13.85) after a review of its files on customers who are politically exposed persons (PEPs) and found an unacceptable risk of Coutts handling the proceeds of crime. The latest censure surpasses the £6.3m ($10.2m) fine Coutts received last year from the FSA for failing to provide adequate advice to clients about the risks associated with AIG Life bonds.
HNW clients rise sharply at CCB
China Construction Bank (CCB) has reported a sharp rise in the number of HNW clients it handles. The bank announced in its 2011 annual results that the number of clients it has with more than RMB10m ($1.6m) grew by 28% last year However CCB did not publish any information about the income, profits, or the size of its asset or client base in its private banking unit
Deutsche Bank confirms de Weck’s replacement
Deutsche Banks head of private wealth management, Pierre de Weck, will stand down from the banks group executive committee (GEC) at the AGM on 31 May 2012. In a reorganisation and expansion of the GEC, Michele Faissola will take a seat as head of a new division called asset and wealth management. The division will include Deutsche Banks private wealth management business as well as its exchange traded funds business and the Deutsche Wealth Services (DWS) business in Germany, Europe and Asia