«Agile» Ralph Hamers was dumped by UBS as CEO in favor of Sergio Ermotti after it was forced to take over Credit Suisse in March. Hamers left a digital parting gift.
A year ago, UBS launched its «key4» digital offering which reflected the bank's efforts to expand into fintech, reflecting the philosophy of then-CEO Ralph Hamers of moving the bank to a flatter and more agile structure.
Today UBS announced the results and progress of those efforts saying with the key4 product, clients can increasingly process more banking transactions digitally at any time from anywhere. It now boasts over 175,000 users, with more joining each day, with the use of its digital tools increasing, according to UBS.
Some 77 percent of UBS personal banking clients and 81 percent of corporate and institutional clients are using its digital offerings.
Expanding Offerings
A statement on the success of the product should give Hamers some satisfaction over the approach that he undertook at the bank. UBS Switzerland chair Sabine Keller-Busse said «I am very proud of what we have achieved. As promised, we continued expanding our offering after the launch of UBS key4 at a rapid pace and across various client groups. And I look forward to expanding the product range even further.»
UBS said it will continue to expand its offerings this year, including bespoke suggestions for clients to optimize their financial situation. Another feature will be one that will fund savings and be managed digitally as gifts for grandchildren.
Credit Suisse Digital Offering
Credit Suisse, which was taken over by UBS in March has a digital offering in its CSX banking app, which is said to have had 100,000 customers after one year.
The Yuh app from Postfinance and Swissquote, which was launched two years ago in May, also reported 100,000 users by the end of last year.
