The head of Barclays' private bank in Switzerland is leaving after less than three years on the job, finews.com reports exclusively. The British bank stressed its commitment to Swiss wealth management.
James Buchanan-Michaelson, head of Barclays' wealth management arm in Switzerland since mid-2015, is leaving the bank with immediate effect, according to an internal memorandum seen by finews.com. The bank didn't give a reason for the exit of the British banker, who joined from Coutts nearly three years ago following several management disruptions at Barclays' Swiss arm.
Buchanan-Michaelson, who couldn't immediately be reached by finews.com, had pledged to build out the bank's Swiss activities. Barclays, which has pulled out of Asian private banking two years ago for lack of scale, has long been rumored to consider selling out in Switzerland as well.
Hiring Push
On Friday, a spokesman for the bank denied the speculation, saying the London-based bank is here to stay. Barclays said it will move long-standing Monaco head Gerald Mathieu (pictured below) to Geneva to lead the Swiss arm.
«These promotions reflect the opportunity we see for growth for private bank and overseas services in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, and our commitment to the region especially Switzerland and Monaco,» European private bank head Francesco Grosoli said in the memorandum.
Indeed, Barclays boss Jes Staley recently tasked the private bank with hiring more than 100 private bankers around the world, including reportedly in Asia despite pulling out in 2016. Barclays also wants its wealth arm to work more closely with its flagship private bank, an approach adopted by competitors like Credit Suisse, Societe Generale, and American players like Goldman Sachs.
