UBS is making good on its promise to roll out a private banking network across Western Europe. The Swiss bank announced today that has opened a branch in Bourdeaux, where it clearly hopes to tap the private wealth generated by the wine industry.
The branch in Bordeaux currently employs 10 people. According to Jean Michel Benoist, manager of the new branch, “Initial contact with clients shows that the Bordelais value the discretion and security associated with UBS very highly. We intend to serve the region’s unique economic profile on a number of fronts. To start with, the winemaking sector is booming here, with an increasing amount of buying and selling of vineyards. Furthermore, having a base in Bordeaux brings us closer to potential wealth management clients throughout the region, which reaches from the Atlantic coast to Toulouse and the Pyrenees to the South. Toulouse, home to world leaders in the aerospace, IT and communication industries, figures among Europe’s top high-tech centres.”
Jean-Louis de Montesquiou, President of the Executive Board of UBS (France) S.A., commented: “By benefiting from the experience, know-how and substantial resources provided by the UBS Group as a whole, we are in a position to offer French investors high-quality advice and best-in-class products in all areas of wealth management, both within France and internationally. Our client advisors open the door to a global network of expertise and investment solutions. Our aim is to offer our clients a range of innovative products and services with exceptional quality and to become one of the major players in private asset management in France in the years ahead.”
UBS (France) S.A. commenced private banking operations in Paris on 1 June 1999 and opened branches in Lyons and Marseilles in 2001. It currently employs 180 people in total. There are also plans to open offices in Nantes, Strasbourg and Lille.
Wealth management for private clients is a core business of UBS. Advice and products are tailored to specific client needs. This strategy involves an end-to-end approach, covering the whole life-cycle and the specific situation of each client, while encompassing all aspects of the legal and regulatory environment in which the client operates.
UBS AG is a global integrated investment services firm and the leading bank in Switzerland. UBS AG is the world’s leading provider of private banking services and one of the largest asset managers globally.