Oddo BHF, the Franco-German financial group, aims to double its assets in Switzerland within a few years. It considers buying a rival to help it achieve this feat.
In the past summer, Erich Pfister, the head of Switzerland at Oddo BHF, confirmed the company’s goal of reaching assets under management of 10 billion Swiss francs ($10 billion) over a five-year period. Speaking in an interview with finews.com, he said the company was well on track to reach its target. Now, Philippe Oddo, the general partner at the company, reaffirmed his ambition for the Swiss business.
He told Swiss business paper «Finanz und Wirtschaft» (behind paywall) that the bank currently manages about 5 billion francs for its clients and plans to double the amount within three years. To reach this target, the bank may make a takeover. In Switzerland, the company employs 55 people and targets mainly German clients.
Offshore Unit Switzerland
The Swiss unit however also plays a major role in the global strategy of the group, Oddo said. «We want to further develop our wealth management know-how abroad and grow outside our existing markets,» he said. «We harbor ambitions in London, the Middle East and Asia in a longer perspective. The expansion we will make from Switzerland. We position the Swiss bank as an offshore bank within our group. We currently evaluate whether we can serve U.S.-based clients from Switzerland.»
Oddo BHF Switzerland won’t probably be profitable this year, but Oddo hopes to breach this key threshold next year.
