Vontobel private bank had a slower start in 2019 compared with last year, said Chief Executive Zeno Staub at the company's annual general meeting. He will put his focus on operational efficiency.
The situation is far from being serious but nevertheless gives an indication of challenges laying ahead for the banking industry. At the annual general meeting of Vontobel in Zurich, Zeno Staub mentioned that the bank had slower start to the year.
«Following the very difficult final two months of 2018, we had a subdued start to 2019 – especially compared to the really strong first quarter of the prior year,» said Staub.
Markets had recovered ground after the decline at the end of last year and assets under management at Vontobel rose to 207.1 billion Swiss francs ($207.4 billion), up from 192.6 at the end of 2018, an increase of some 8 percent.
Volatile Markets and Growing Uncertainty
The growth in assets was mainly attributable to the recovery of the markets, while the bank also received some net new money, primarily in the asset management division, Staub added. Vontobel is well on its way to reach the targets set for 2020, but uncertainties persist.
«We expect to see higher levels of political and economic uncertainty and volatile markets in the coming months,» the CEO said. «Nevertheless, we will continue to systematically focus on our growth- and client-oriented priorities in 2019, while at the same time assigning a high level of importance to operating efficiency.»
