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The once-cozy ties between UBS CEO Sergio Ermotti and Chairman Axel Weber have chilled. The public debate over succession plans for Ermotti aren't the only reason, finews.com has learned.

UBS Chairman Axel Weber joined a meeting of the Swiss bank's top management recently. The reason for the unusual visit? The incessant media coverage of succession plans for CEO Sergio Ermotti.

Now in his ninth year running the Swiss wealth powerhouse, Ermotti was irked by a recent appearance by Weber on broadcaster «Bloomberg». Weber, Ermotti felt, had been only too willing to fuel speculation over CEO succession with his comments.

Whether by design or simply bumbling, Weber's appearance launched the issue as a public debate – to Ermotti's displeasure. «Weber is apparently contributing to Ermotti's sense of insecurity», a person familiar with the relationship between the two told finews.com.

Twitter Trap

This insecurity was on full display a short time later, when Ermotti lashed out on social media against «Manager Magazin», which reported that the CEO was thinking of replacing wealth management co-head Martin Blessing.

The article hadn't even appeared when Ermotti hit the «send» button on his then two-day-old Twitter account, nor had UBS' media department taken a stance yet. The move backfired: Ermotti gave the item more airtime than the German monthly magazine would otherwise have commanded, as finews.com reported last week.

At the management meeting, Weber articulated an apology of sorts, finews.com has learned: his remarks to «Bloomberg» were ham-fisted, Weber conceded to Ermotti and his 12-person management board.

Putting Up United Front

With his comments weighing an internal or outside replacement for Ermotti, Weber had effectively made the CEO a lame duck, as German daily «Börsen-Zeitung» (in German, behind paywall) noted. Or, as a UBS banker put it: «The two are no longer compatible and are simply putting on a brave face publicly».

As tempting as it is to view the «Webermotti» conflict through the prism of a few graceless public remarks, the root cause lies far deeper. The two are jostling over who will define the long-term strategy of UBS.

CEO Not Welcome on Board?

Weber is no longer hot on the idea of Ermotti moving from the C-suite to the board, and eventually taking over as chairman, according to people familiar with the matter. The former Bundesbanker now believes that Ermotti can no longer enliven UBS – and its share price, in particular.