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You are now writing mortgages for clients in Switzerland. Do you run the risk of getting in at the peak of the property boom, when many fear a collapse? 

No. We want to offer our clients the best possible service. Many of our international clientele own homes and properties in Switzerland, and want to be advised by us. We've begun offering mortgage solutions in order to meet this demand.

«New technology is primarily instruments to support our advisers»

This isn't going to make us a mortgage bank, because we will only lend to clients who have their assets managed by us. 

Last year, Rothschild opened an advisory subsidiary in Switzerland. What was the reasoning behind this, and what progress has the unit made? 

Vincent Thiébaud joined Rothschild & Co last August as head of global advisory in Switzerland. We already work very closely with his team in order to utilize synergies in the Swiss market. 

You updated your information technology systems. How have clients benefited? 

The new systems primarily allow us to advise clients better and make a lot ore information available to them much more quickly and transparently than before. 

Do you assume that the advance of digitization will second-guess your business model? 

Personalized advice is the focus for our clients, who are very wealthy individuals or families. The possibilities that new technology offers are simply supporting instruments which can improve how we give advice. 

«We will keep hiring private bankers this year»

Each wealth situation is very unique and complex, often spread across several countries. We offer a total overview and thanks to our experienced private bankers, a clear added value. We are continuously expanding this type of advice. 

Your staff levels remained unchanged last year. Do you plan to keep expanding headcount? 

Despite remaining steady on headcount last year, we strengthened our client-facing staff and reduced our back office employees. Given our growth, I assume that we will keep expanding our private banker workforce this year.

Thanks to the small number of clients per banker, our advisers are viewed as partners who understand their clients familial and business circumstances very well and can attend to them comprehensively. The average experience of our private bankers if more than 17 years and the teams are very stable, which clients appreciate.

What qualities do you expect from job candidates? 

A broad knowledge of investing is the basis. Our private bankers also have to be able to think entrepreneurially and know the regulatory environment of various markets. The job has become much more demanding – but also much more interesting.

Rothschild Bank in Zurich celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. How has it changed since 1968?

We used to be a traditional branch of a foreign bank, focused on international clients. This has changed dramatically in the last ten years in particular. Today, more than 40 percent of our managed assets are from Swiss clients. We have a clear strategy with a focus on a few markets which we know inside out. Our offering is exactly in line with our target segment: families, foundations and entrepreneurs.

Laurent Gagnebin joined Rothschild Wealth Management Equitas, the Genevan arm of Zurich-based Rothschild, in 2011. Prior to that, the 41-year-old ran Investec Bank in Geneva. He got his start in finance at Goldman Sachs in Switzerland, after working in the luxury hospitality industry for several years following his education at the École hôtelière de Lausanne. He took over as head of Rothschild Bank in Switzerland in 2016.