The last few years have not been kind to the Argentinian economy. In 2022, inflation returned to levels not seen since the dark days of the 1990s. For clients eager to protect their wealth and navigate a fraught financial landscape, picking the right private bank has never been more important. The award this year for Best International Private Bank in Argentina goes to Santander Private Banking.
The bank boasts a team of Argentina-specialists, consisting of 18 bankers and four investment advisors covering Buenos Aires, Rosario, Cordoba, and Neuqué. Argentinian customers understandably tend to look abroad for safer havens when it comes to investment solutions. Santander has the advantage of being able to leverage fully licensed private banking operations in Miami and Geneva.
The firm’s service revolves around four main platforms: banking and investment services, active investment services, portfolio advisory and discretionary portfolio management. Ultra-high net-worth clients have added the option of custom mandates. Value-added services include real estate advisory, customised structured products and wealth planning.
Santander’s Belcanto Luxembourg-domiciled open-ended investment companies are offered exclusively to high net-worth international private clients, while bespoke investment companies are available for the firm’s ultra-high net-worth clients. The firm’s web of international relationships means it can connect clients with best-in-class managers at preferential terms.
On the tech side, Santander's data-driven strategy has led it to enlist Bloomberg AIM technology, ESG impact investing tools and various cloud-based business intelligence solutions for client monitoring and analysis. The firm remains focussed on improving the client’s digital experience from onboarding remote identification to an enhanced e-banking app experience with biometric verification.