UBS plans to donate $1 million towards helping contain novel coronavirus. The Swiss bank arguably has more at stake than other financial firms because of its ambitions for the Chinese market.
The Zurich-based wealth manager is putting a donation towards frontline responders, through Chinese charity partners. The measures focus on a range of areas including «timely delivery of medical supplies to the needy, screening and treatment of suspected cases, the development of treatments and vaccines and the construction of medical facilities in the community,» UBS said.
Asian firms have ponied up: Jack Ma-led Alibaba donated $14.5 million to fight the virus. But coronavirus has particular urgency for UBS: China, where the virus is centered, is a huge target market for wealth management as well as asset management for the Swiss company. UBS manages $357 billion in wider Asia, according to an annual compilation by «Asian Private Banker».
Hard Lesson in Diplomacy
In China, the virus has killed more than 200 people and was declared an emergency by the World Health Organization last week. «This is a challenging time for many of our employees and customers, their families and the local community,» said David Chin, the Swiss firm's head of investment banking and China country head.
The Swiss bank learned a lesson on the delicacy of dealing with China the hard way, last year: it suspended chief wealth management economist Paul Donovan for more than three months, after comments from the Briton over a perceived ethnic slur caused a maelstrom in China.
