private banking survey results
Greg Kyle-Langley first stepped into Coutts’ London head office at 440 Strand in July 2007.
The cracks were already starting to show. Bear Stearns’ share price was showing signs of strain. In August, BNP Paribas halted redemptions on three investment funds, and soon after that came the run on UK lender Northern Rock. A year later, of course, the entire financial system came close to collapse.
For many, the global financial crisis was a disaster. But for Kyle-Langley, those crazy days were a once-in-a-lifetime chance to fast track his training as a private banker.
Then, as now, Coutts was one of the industry’s most storied names and clients, including many of the City’s highest-earning bankers and financiers, were preparing for the worst.
“I got to hear some of the hardest conversations in wealth management,” he says.
“I heard what was going on at Lehman and other firms, with senior bankers fearing for the safety of their money.
