Lombard Odier takes business tie-up route for expansion but could look at acquisition opportunities
10 AUG 2017
Lombard Odier, the Swiss private bank, is expanding its footprint in Asia via business tie-ups with local banks but has not ruled out inorganic growth, said Asia Pacific CEO Vincent Magnenat.
While Magnenat did not specify what characteristics an ideal acquisition target should have, he said such opportunities should fit with Lombard Odier's strategy.
For the bank to grow, it need to find talent, specifically relationship managers to expand its teams across unspecified regions of Asia, the CEO said.
In June, Spanish media reported that Lombard Odier was looking to make acquisitions in Spain and is analysing the market to acquire an Independent Financial Advice Company (IFAC). With the arrival of the Mifid II, a new European directive for the financial sector, IFACs will seek mergers or become agents for banks, as reported.
Magnenat would not comment on the strategy of Lombard Odier in Europe but said the Swiss bank's Asian strategy is to forge business partnerships with local banks, which has been done in Thailand and the Philippines, to be able to cultivate relationships with its Asian clientele.
This week, Lombard Odier and PHP 91bn (USD 1.8bn) market capitalisation UnionBank of the Philippines [PSE:UBP] announced their partnership under which, Lombard Odier will share its expertise in wealth management and family services with UnionBank. Through this partnership, UnionBank is launching the first USD-denominated risk-based fund in the Philippines.
UnionBank First Vice President and Trust Group head Robert Ramos said this was the first time it was offering family services to their ultra high-net-worth clients. He estimates that wealth management in the Philippines has a CAGR of 12% in the past five years.
Magnenat, on the other hand, said the Philippines was an attractive market because aside from the fast growth of wealth, the wealth management market has now moved from the first generation of high-net-worth individuals or families to the second or third generation, who have a different set of needs.
The Geneva-based, 221-year-old Lombard Odier managed USD 230bn of total client assets, as of end-December 2016, the company said in a statement. It employs about 2,250 people and has 26 offices in more than 20 countries including London, Paris, Zurich, Moscow, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Tokyo.