Private banking: The fight escalates for Latin America’s wealthy

LATIN AMERICA’S DOMESTIC private banks are fending off mounting competition from international wealth managers by focusing on client service and their in-depth knowledge of local markets.

The region has one of the fastest-growing wealth markets globally but according to Euromoney’s most recent research (Private Banking and Wealth Management Survey 2010 , Euromoney, February 2010) most of the main players in private banking in the continent’s biggest economies are international wealth managers. Brazil is the main exception, as the private banking divisions of local banks Itaú Unibanco, Bradesco and Banco do Brasil dominate the market, which is the biggest in Latin America, accounting for about one-third of the region’s private clients.