Union Bancaire Privée
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| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Financial Services |
| Founded | 1969 |
| Founder(s) | Edgar de Picciotto |
| Area served | Worldwide |
| Key people | Edgar de Picciotto (Chairman) Guy de Picciotto (CEO) Richard Wohanka (CEO Asset Management) |
| Products | Private Banking Asset Management Alternative Investments |
| AUM | $75 billion [1] |
| Employees | 1,200 |
| Website | www.ubp.com |
Union Bancaire Privée was founded in 1969 by Edgar de Picciotto. UBP, one of the most highly capitalized private banks, is a major player in the field of asset management in Switzerland with over $75 billion of assets under management.[2]
UBP is a full scale asset-management bank focused on performance and innovative investment solutions for private and institutional clients. In 1996 UBP Asset Management (UBPAM) opened in New York City and the first American fund of funds was created.[3]
The bank is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland and has 1,200 employees. The firm has offices in New York City, London, Paris, Moscow, Zurich, Lugano, Luxembourg, Brussels, Barcelona, Istanbul, Beirut, Tel Aviv, Dubai, Singapore, Hong Kong, Bermuda, Nassau, and Montevideo.[4]
Contents |
[edit] Corporate Affairs
[edit] Private Banking
Union Bancaire Privée has 400 private wealth managers in different countries. UBP has expanded into the Middle East and recently opened an office in Moscow to cover the Russian and Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) markets.[5]
[edit] Asset Management
UBP offers a wide range of capabilities in asset allocation, equities, bonds, diversification strategies and alternative fund of funds.
[edit] Fund of Funds
In 2007, UBP was the world’s second largest allocator to hedge funds according to InvestHedge, and was elected Best Institutional Product Provider, in the HFR European Fund of Hedge Fund Awards. By 2008, UBP was the largest fund of hedge funds player in the world with $55bn invested.
[edit] Sales and Trading
UBP services include: advisory, structured products, equity trading and brokerage, equity arbitrage, currency and precious metal trading, forwards and derivatives, treasury management and bond trading. UBP has over 40 specialist traders working with private wealth managers.
[edit] Financials
The balance sheet total reached CHF 18 billion (USD 19 billion), and the return on shareholder equity for the 2010 financial year was 12.8%. By pursuing a conservative approach to risk-management, UBP has maintained a solid financial base and a strong balance sheet with a high level of liquidity. With a Tier 1 capital ratio of 24.1%, UBP is one of the best-capitalised banks in Switzerland.
UBP is acquiring ABN AMRO's Swiss Branch, as announced by ABN on August 15th 2011.[6]
[edit] Controversy
On May 8, 2009, a lawsuit against the bank was filed on behalf of New York investor Andrea Barron by law firm Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossman LLP in the U.S. District Court in Manhattan. The lawsuit is seeking class-action status for investors in UBP Funds as of Dec. 11, 2008, and damages, including the return of management fees.[7]
The bank has said it invested less than 1% of assets ($700 million) in the Madoff ponzi scheme.[8] In March 2009, the bank offered to compensate eligible investors 50% of the money they initially invested with Madoff subject to a number of conditions.[9]
In early December 2010, Union Bancaire Privee sidestepped the suit when it agreed to pay as much as $500 million in cash to resolve Bernard Madoff trustee’s claims. Judge Thomas P. Griesa decided Defendant's motion to dismiss was granted, and the case was dismissed in its entirety. [10] UBP was the first bank to settle Madoff trustee's claim, while several other private banks, including HSBC, JP Morgan and UBS, are still being sued for the case.[11]
The 2010 financial results include the agreement the Bank reached with the US liquidator dealing with the bankruptcy of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities, which allowed UBP to bring a final close to this chapter.[12]
In 2012 Philipp Hildebrand, a former executive and head of hedge funds at UBP, resigned from the Swiss National Bank following a scandal and suspicion of inside trading. [13] [14]
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.opalesque.com/IndustryUpdates/1417/AuM_at_CHF65bn_compared_to_CHF75bn141.html Opalesque January 2011
- ^ http://www.opalesque.com/57011/UBP_reinventing_its_approach_as_alternatives_assets011.html Opalesque February 2010, updated to SFr65/$70 bn in Jaunuary 2011
- ^ http://www.ubpam.com/timeline.html Corporate Timeline
- ^ http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=876195 BusinessWeek Company Profile
- ^ http://www.ubpbank.com/cms/ubp/swiss-bank/Marketing-Leaflets/UBP-in-brief UBP Corporate
- ^ http://www.opalesque.com/IndustryUpdates/1417/AuM_at_CHF65bn_compared_to_CHF75bn141.html
- ^ http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20090511-714664.html WSJ
- ^ http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=au8EZCwnvYxA Bloomberg
- ^ http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/03/13/ubp-makes-offer-to-madoff-victims/ Dealbook NY Times March 2009
- ^ http://docs.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/new-york/nysdce/1:2009cv04471/345478/48/
- ^ http://www.vrl-financial-news.com/wealth-management/private-banker-intl/issues/pbi-2010/pbi-267/ubp-first-to-settle-madoff-tru.aspx
- ^ http://www.opalesque.com/IndustryUpdates/1417/AuM_at_CHF65bn_compared_to_CHF75bn141.html
- ^ http://www.efd.admin.ch/dokumentation/medieninformationen/archiv/02840/index.html?lang=fr
- ^ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/banksandfinance/9003630/Swiss-National-Bank-chief-Philipp-Hildebrand-resigns-over-wifes-currency-trade.html
