Morgan Stanley to hire more bankers in Japan as rivals loom

[TOKYO] Morgan Stanley’s Japanese investment-banking joint venture plans to hire more bankers this year to compete with Nomura Holdings Inc and defend its three-year grip on mergers advice in the country. The US bank and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc.agreed to increase staff at their securities firm, including people to cover industries and advise on…

UBS bolsters wealth arm with ex-Brevan Howard partners

The wealth management arm of Swiss investment bank UBS has created a new team to focus on trading strategies, in an effort to meet demand from ultra-wealthy clients for shorter-term trading options. The group have hired Vinay Pande, former partner of Brevan Howard, one of Europe’s largest hedge fund firms, to head up the new…

Advisor Rothschild still monitoring sale of AIB

Investment bank Rothschild is continuing to advise the Irish government and is monitoring stock markets in relation to State-owned AIB, the Department of Finance told the Irish Examiner yesterday. It will be up to the new government after the election to decide on the sale of AIB, the department said. Rothschild started working for the…

SWISS PRIVATE BANKS FACING UNPRECEDENTED CRISIS ?

Despite its position of leader of the wealth management industry, the Swiss banking industry has been undergoing its worst crisis for several years now. The number of private banks in Switzerland has drastically collapsed from 170 in 2009 to less than 130 in 2014 (decrease of 23% in 5 years). Forecasts communicated by institutes such…

Job of the Month – February 2016

Dear all, This excellent start to the year, the recruitment of Elkho Group expands in Monaco, Paris, Geneva and Luxembourg. For February, please find below our current assignments: Consultant Recrutement à Monaco pour participer au développement d’Elkho Group. (Salaire selon le profil) Banquier Privé Sénior à Paris, France dans une banque privée d’origine française, ambitieuse…

Swiss private bank Lombard Odier says PBOC has ordered suspension of funds that channel domestic savings abroad

Geneva’s oldest private bank Lombard Odier’s expansion plan into China has been hit by the People’s Bank of China’s suspension for new offshore product sales, according to the bank’s Asia management. The Swiss bank’s comments is the first confirmation for the widely circulated rumour of a suspension for the Renminbi Qualified Domestic Institutional Investment (RQDII)…

Zurich to sell Luxembourg private bank unit to Lombard Int’l

The deal is subject to regulatory approvals and it is expected to complete in the first quarter of 2016. Zurich Eurolife S.A. is Zurich’s wholly owned subsidiary in Luxembourg, having provided life insurance since 1995. Xavier Nevez, chief executive of Zurich Eurolife S.A., said: “The decision to sell our private banking solutions business in Luxembourg…

Bank of Montreal Enters Robo-Advising Ahead of Other Lenders

Bank of Montreal starts signing up customers for its automated low-fee investment-advice platform this week, making the lender the first of Canada’s big banks to embrace a robo-advisory business. “It’s really an area that we’re predicting great growth,” Joanna Rotenberg, head of personal wealth management at the Toronto-based bank, said in an interview. “We think…

New global head of private banking

HONG KONG • Standard Chartered has named former Barclays banker Didier von Daeniken as its global head of private banking and wealth management, in the latest streamlining of management at the embattled London- based lender. Mr von Daeniken takes on a new role leading the private banking and wealth management divisions which had previously been…

HSBC appoints Rothschild for restructuring of private banking arm

HSBC has appointed advisers to spur the final phase of its private banking restructuring, after its Swiss unit came under heavy fire earlier this year for helping rich customers dodge taxes. Europe’s biggest bank has appointed Rothschild to help manage the restructure, which involves selling portfolios of riskier clients and shrinking its global footprint, said…