(Bloomberg) — UBS Group AG Chairman Colm Kelleher mentioned that his financial institution is finally seeking to purchase one other US wealth administration agency to increase its presence there, as soon as the Credit score Suisse integration is full.
UBS must make the agency which it purchased in 2000, Paine Webber, work higher, Kelleher mentioned at an occasion in Oxford on Tuesday. On the similar time, the financial institution is wanting once more to do what Morgan Stanley did — doubling its profitability via the acquisition of Smith Barney, he mentioned.
“UBS would very very similar to to have the ability to, when the time is correct, do an identical form of factor within the US,” Kelleher added. “We’d like 3 years to digest our personal acquisition of Credit score Suisse, type out our techniques points and do every little thing else. We don’t need to be distracted once we’ve nonetheless received issues to place proper.”
UBS is the most important world wealth supervisor however lags its friends within the US, the place it has struggled to scale up the unbiased dealer mannequin it makes use of. Chief Govt Officer Sergio Ermotti has additionally spoken about the necessity to increase on this planet’s largest economic system, and appointed key lieutenant Rob Karofsky run the area earlier this 12 months.
Learn Extra: Ermotti Says UBS Catch-Up on US Wealth Market Will Take Time
UBS operates with a community of economic advisers who, whereas they ship UBS merchandise to shoppers, are usually not immediately certain to the financial institution. The Swiss agency’s community spans greater than 6,000 advisers, although that’s far fewer than its key rival — Morgan Stanley.
“We’ve got the associated fee base of a a lot bigger group within the US however we don’t have the capabilities but that permit us to totally leverage our world franchise,” Ermotti mentioned earlier this 12 months.
Beneath earlier chief government Ralph Hamers, UBS made an try to purchase Wealthfront, a robo-adviser agency that might have taken the financial institution away from its conventional ultra-high web value shopper base. The deal was deserted in 2022.
Talking about his personal plans, Kelleher mentioned that he doesn’t plan to serve for 10 years, a typical chairman time period in Switzerland.
“I’ve been considering extra like 8 years; I’ve accomplished three,” he mentioned. “My job is to ensure we get the precise alternative for Sergio after which I give that new CEO sufficient time to get bedded in after which I’m going.”
