Private banking CEO roundtable participantsPdW, Deutsche The resolution for the euro sovereign debt crisis will take us well into 2012, if not 2013, so markets will remain volatile. Therefore investment advice to clients will need to be fairly cautious. Underlying wealth will continue to grow, but we expect to see greater competition in the private banking industry as banks focus on less capital-consuming businesses.
TK, Barclays We expect an increasingly competitive market as banks realize this is a capital-efficient business to be in. Volatility is likely to continue whether or not Europe is resolved because economies are growing at different paces. Client portfolios are underinvested in risk and overinvested in cash, and that will mean private banks will have to find places to put clients’ money to work effectively.
JF, Citi We anticipate very challenging market conditions as politics drives outcomes. How Europe plays out will be a very big juncture. For the industry, it is about continuing to regain client trust. There may be a pick-up in competition globally. In the US, there will be more pressure on the broker model. In Europe, it’s good to be an American bank. And in Asia we will see a lot of the Swiss banks rallying to build market share as they are losing out to the US and local banks.