Julius Baer's Chief Executive will take over at the lobby devoted to the Swiss wealth management industry's interests. The move comes amid a handover at a small group of «genuinely» private banks as well.
The largest trade lobby of Swiss asset and wealth management banks elected Philipp Rickenbacher, CEO of Julius Baer since 2019, as its new chairman, it said in an emailed statement on Thursday. At the Association of Swiss Asset and Wealth Management Banks, Rickenbacher replaces Marcel Rohner, who is to run the wider Swiss industry group from September.
Rickenbacher has been vice-chairman of this trade body since last May, and is also on the board of the wider Swiss Bankers Association, which groups the alpine nation's more than 200 lenders including retail banks, wealth managers, or other specialized firms.
Niche Wealth Groups
Separately, the Association of Swiss Private Banks, or ASPB, elected Grégoire Bordier (pictured below) as their leader. Bordier, managing partner of the eponymous Genevan bank, replaces Yves Mirabaud, who had completed two terms. The ASPB's nine members are Pictet, Lombard Odier, Mirabaud, Bordier, E. Gutzwiller, Landolt, Gonet, Rahn+Bodmer, and Reichmuth.
Confusingly, Grégoire Bordier already oversees yet another lobby group, the Swiss Private Bankers Association. This body groups just five wealth managers – Bordier, E. Gutzwiller, Rahn+Bodmer, Baumann, and Reichmuth. They have trademarked the designation «banquier privé» to distinguish that their partners shoulder unlimited liability for the banks' obligations.
Ensuring Favorable Conditions
The Swiss wealth and asset management group now helmed by Rickenbacher named Vontobel CEO Zeno Staub (pictured below) as vice-chairman. Staub has been part of the lobby for several years.
Rickenbacher said it is more important than ever to ensure the best framework for the industry, given a rising regulatory burden and strategic challenges posed by digitization and by competing financial centers. The trade body's daily business continues to be run by Pascal Gentinetta, a veteran Swiss financial lobbyist who is currently head of public policy at Julius Baer.
