Best private bank: UBS
UBS demonstrated stability and consistency throughout the review period, amid significant structural change in Switzerland’s private banking market.
During the review period, UBS completed the legal merger of UBS Switzerland AG and Credit Suisse (Schweiz) AG, enabling the phased migration of Swiss-booked clients onto a single platform. Consolidating the two franchises allowed UBS to streamline duplicated infrastructure and channels, strengthening the bank’s operating model. UBS took a measured approach that focused on maintaining service continuity, mitigating the disruption that can accompany large migrations and maintaining client confidence.
Over the same period, UBS enhanced the core pillars of its private banking proposition in Switzerland. The chief investment office (CIO) expanded the reach of its research, solutions and model portfolios across the combined client base, giving former Credit Suisse clients immediate access to UBS’s established advisory framework. This integration reinforced the bank’s ability to deliver a unified, CIO-led investment approach at scale.
The bank also advanced its digital capabilities, including revamped Swiss webpages and the broader rollout of tools such as Direct Investment Insights, which allow clients to act swiftly on research.
These upgrades strengthened engagement and efficiency and were supported by ongoing investment in a highly resilient Swiss operating platform, which now runs on infrastructure with over 99.999% availability.
Best international private bank: BNP Paribas Wealth Management
BNP Paribas Wealth Management strengthened its private banking offering in Switzerland during the review period by integrating local investment management with an institutional-level product suite.
In Switzerland, discretionary and contractual advisory mandates were run locally, with most discretionary portfolio management model portfolios meeting or beating benchmarks through 2024, giving Swiss clients benchmark-based accountability while preserving mandate customisation. The Strategic Asset Allocation service added 10-year forecasts across more than 60 asset classes, creating a quantified base for tactical tilts.
The Swiss desk originated bespoke fixed income structures (such as “Upside FRN” and “CLN 50 widest”) alongside equity solutions such as S&P 500 Excess Return. Together, these translated macro views into yield and risk-controlled payoffs that private clients rarely access without the interface of an investment bank. This supported strong asset gathering into the notes during the period, diversifying return drivers beyond traditional long-only exposures.
Thematic investing shifted from narrative to active allocation, and every open thematic “capsule” older than one year outperformed its benchmark on average by around 30%. Alternatives were curated through approximately 50 manager meetings a year in Switzerland, with hedge funds emphasised for dispersion and downside management in the new rates regime.
Digital execution was integrated into the broader client experience, supported by a rebuilt myWealth mobile platform that delivered a simpler, more secure workflow and integrated chat/order capture, allowing Swiss clients to approve ideas and monitor portfolios with smoother interaction alongside their relationship manager, raising adoption of advisory insights in real time.
ESG integration was independently verifiable, with the Deloitte-audited Clover methodology guiding product selection and aligning client preferences with regulation-ready reporting.
Best pure play/boutique private bank: Lombard Odier
Lombard Odier’s focus on improved solutions across investment management, wealth planning and tax-efficient structuring for Swiss clients earned it the title of best pure play/boutique private bank in Switzerland.
The bank’s integrated approach to managing client assets, which aligns different asset categories within a single structure, proved valuable in a fiscal environment where after-tax efficiency is central to long-term outcomes. By managing assets holistically, the bank improved after-tax performance without raising risk exposure. More than half of Swiss assets were managed on a discretionary basis during the review period, demonstrating client confidence in this model.
Diagnostic tools such as Wealth Check and My Wealth Journey strengthened the advisory process by mapping full balance sheets and long-term priorities. Their use helped clients address succession, retirement planning and cross-border considerations with greater precision at a time when these issues were becoming more complex.
During the review period, Lombard Odier also enhanced its Swiss client proposition through deeper specialisation across entrepreneurs, independents and top executives – segments that often face complex liquidity events and require tailored, tax-efficient planning.
The bank’s seven-location Swiss footprint supported high-touch delivery and access to local expertise, while proprietary tools such as Family Check and the bank’s advanced asset liability management engine enabled more rigorous planning across generations and in relation to clients’ liabilities.
Digital capabilities, including the My LO platform and enhanced reporting through LO Smart, further improved transparency and responsiveness for clients seeking real-time, consolidated oversight of their wealth.
Best for family office services: Julius Baer
Julius Baer expanded its presence in Switzerland during the review period by deepening its specialisation in serving family offices, a segment that represents more than half of its ultra-high-net-worth (UHNW) business.
Its progress was driven by an approach that blends traditional private banking with capabilities drawn from trading, institutional advisory and multi-asset portfolio management. Many Swiss single family office professionals had similar institutional backgrounds and sought direct access to counterparties who could help design bespoke investment structures across traditional and alternative assets.
Julius Baer’s large, in-house pool of trading and sales specialists offered this level of connectivity, giving clients efficient routes to market and enabling more precise implementation of complex investment strategies.
Wealth planning took on greater importance as many Swiss-based families were active across multiple jurisdictions. Julius Baer’s large team of wealth planners supported families with relocation planning, asset-protection frameworks, governance structures and succession road maps. This reduced advisory fragmentation for globally mobile clients by enabling coordination from a single Swiss hub.
Relationship management teams were structured around an internal UHNW and family offices competence centre, ensuring consistent coverage for clients whose needs required expertise spanning asset management, research, financing and asset servicing. This improved the bank’s ability to handle interlinked requirements at scale.
Digital infrastructure originally developed for intermediaries – including connectivity solutions and the BaerOnline platform – supported family offices that required institutional-level reporting, streamlined data sharing and system integration, improving operational efficiency across multi-asset portfolios.
Best for client service: Credinvest Bank
Credinvest Bank’s focus on strengthening the substance and precision of its client service significantly improved the private banking experience offered in Switzerland during the review period.
The bank expanded its investment toolkit by introducing new structures, including different actively managed certificates with multiple underlying assets, as well as tax-efficient term deposit notes. These gave clients regulated access to complex or previously inefficient markets and improved portfolio flexibility at a time when Swiss private banking clients sought diversification without compromising transparency.
Trackers on pre-IPO companies and on Indian non-dematerialised funds served a similar purpose, opening channels that historically required high administrative effort or were unavailable to private clients.
Client service benefited from marked improvements in reporting. More granular and configurable portfolio data enhanced clients’ ability to assess exposures, an important factor in a jurisdiction where regulatory detail and tax clarity shape investment decisions. Digitalisation of internal processes reduced turnaround times and supported faster responses from relationship managers, reinforcing the bank’s high-touch model.
The formation of a digital innovation team strengthened operational capabilities. In addition, enhancements to onboarding and the introduction of AI-supported processes helped smooth the administrative journey, reducing friction in account setup and improving day-to-day interactions.
Throughout the period, the bank maintained a stable relationship manager headcount and preserved its client-to-relationship-manager ratio, ensuring continuity in personalised engagement despite business growth. Niche services, including secured lending against supercars, broadened liquidity options for wealthier clients by allowing them to raise capital without asset disposals.
Best for alternative investments: Novum Partners
Novum Partners strengthened its alternative investment offering in Switzerland’s private banking market during the review period, combining thorough due diligence with improved portfolio transparency and timely execution.
A core development was the enhancement of the firm’s reporting and consolidation infrastructure. Its proprietary tools delivered detailed visibility across private equity, direct holdings and hedge funds, including J-curve metrics, NAV and valuation multiples. For Swiss families managing multi-banked portfolios, the ability to see trades reflected in consolidated views within one to two hours – compared with the usual practice of next-day updates – significantly improved decision-making in illiquid markets.
The firm also recorded higher adoption of alternative investment allocations among clients based in Switzerland. Advisory conversations increasingly replaced portions of fixed income with hedge fund allocations where appropriate, improving after-tax outcomes while broadening diversification. This approach enabled clients to retain favourable treatment of gains without increasing risk, addressing Switzerland’s specific tax considerations for residents.
Across private markets, Novum maintained a disciplined selection process: around 1,000 funds were screened, narrowing to six to 10 commitments each year. Investment committees included families directly in discussions on private equity, venture and direct deals, under a structure that applies no origination, management or carry fees to alternative allocations.
Although assets were still early in their lifecycle, several investments already showed significant progress during the review period. Direct transactions averaged a 2.1x valuation multiple, including a 4.2x realised exit, illustrating the positive trajectory of the underlying portfolio companies as they advanced through key value-creation milestones.
Best for digital assets: BBVA Switzerland
BBVA in Switzerland leads the digital asset industry, redefining how Swiss private banking clients access, secure and integrate the emerging asset class within sophisticated wealth management frameworks.
The bank pioneered Europe’s first Tier‑1, fully integrated cryptocurrency trading and custody service in 2021. This early move laid the technological and strategic foundations for New Gen, BBVA’s next‑generation digital investment ecosystem.
New Gen delivers a unified, institutional‑grade platform where clients manage traditional assets alongside a curated digital asset suite spanning Bitcoin, Ethereum, USDC, Solana, Cardano and Avalanche. This interoperability eliminates the fragmentation typical of external fintech platforms, while cementing BBVA Switzerland’s reputation for engineering holistic, high‑trust investment environments.
The model’s strength is evidenced by exceptional market traction: more than 10% of clients opened a crypto‑asset wallet within six months of launch, driving new‑client acquisition and deepening long‑term loyalty.
Cybersecurity remains the bank’s defining competitive differentiator. Its institutional‑grade architecture, strict regulatory alignment, and upcoming cold‑vault custody capability (launching the first quarter of 2026) demonstrate a forward‑looking commitment to safeguarding client assets in a jurisdiction globally recognised for financial stability and precision.
In a country synonymous with security, engineering and wealth management heritage, BBVA delivers a digital asset proposition that is technologically superior and strategically transformative.
Best for sustainability: Edmond de Rothschild
During the review period, Edmond de Rothschild demonstrated that sustainability can be embedded into Swiss private banking in ways that deliver clear, real-world outcomes.
A central development was the reinforcement of ESG integration across its offering, ensuring that sustainability considerations were consistently reflected in the advice and solutions available to local clients. The bank also refined how it captures client preferences, employing its proprietary sustainability questionnaire designed to go beyond regulatory minimums in a non-MiFID jurisdiction.
Structured training for bankers during the period helped deepen conversations and improve the precision of sustainability profiling. This reduced the risk of portfolios diverging from stated values.
Progress in private markets was also more fully articulated, with developments flowing through to tangible opportunities. The launch of the fourth Ginkgo fund in 2025 extended the bank’s long-running work in urban regeneration, converting polluted European industrial sites into functional spaces. This provided Swiss private banking clients with access to strategies showing clearly measurable environmental gains.
The continued expansion of the Benjamin de Rothschild Infrastructure Debt Generation (Bridge) platform, with capital directed to energy-transition assets, further strengthened exposure to projects supporting carbon-intensity reduction and energy resilience, reflecting client demand for demonstrable impact rather than thematic intent.
These advances were underpinned by strengthened sustainability governance. The appointment of senior specialists, including additional sustainability expertise embedded within teams based in Geneva, ensured that private banking advisers had direct access to technical support, helping maintain consistency between the bank’s sustainability strategy and the guidance delivered to clients.
Best independent wealth manager: Novum Partners
Novum Partners’ strength as an independent wealth manager in Switzerland stems from a model that blends operational precision with a high level of service.
Its structure, centred on around 40 ultra-high-net-worth (UHNW) families, enabled relationship manager ratios as low as 1:3 during the review period, ensuring a level of proximity and oversight that stands out within the Swiss multi-family-office landscape. This became particularly relevant as the firm continued to manage complex, multi-bank portfolios where timely execution and accurate consolidation are essential to risk control.
A key development was the refinement of Novum’s reporting and consolidation infrastructure. Guardian, the firm’s system, provided near real-time visibility across liquid and illiquid holdings, with trades appearing within hours. This reduced the operational lag typically associated with multi-custodian arrangements and improved the quality of investment decisions in a period characterised by rapid market shifts.
The accompanying automated reporting engine allowed the firm to scale bespoke reporting without compromising accuracy or speed, which is central to maintaining oversight for families in Switzerland with global exposures.
The firm also strengthened its investment governance. Families were invited to participate as observers in committees for private equity, hedge funds and direct investments, giving them insight into the diligence process and reducing the imbalance of information that can arise when advisory and product distribution incentives are misaligned. Novum’s fee structure, with no product-linked remuneration, reinforced this transparency.
Finally, the firm’s work in cross-border wealth planning had noticeable impact. By integrating tax, residency and structural considerations into ongoing portfolio management, it reduced long-term risks for internationally mobile clients based in Switzerland and ensured investment decisions remained aligned with evolving family circumstances.
