Elliot Wilson

OPINION

Credit Suisse’s collapse and private banking’s wealth carousel

Will the fall of Credit Suisse be a seismic moment for private banking? Probably not – the reality is that wealthy clients need their financial advisers too much. Wealth is flighty for sure, but it usually alights nearby at a more stable lender.

Elliot Wilson, March 21, 2023

OPINION

Deutsche’s private bank cost-cutting crusade pays off

The COO of Deutsche Bank’s International Private Bank, Sandra Wirfs, tells Euromoney how it has been able not just to slash costs but also to make its wealth management business more cost-efficient than the core bank.

Elliot Wilson, March 07, 2023

OPINION

China: Bao Fan’s disappearance sends a bad signal at a tricky time

The whereabouts of investment banker Bao Fan are unknown just when China wants to attract foreign talent and capital, not deter it.

Elliot Wilson, February 22, 2023

WEALTH

Deutsche’s private bank-powered turnaround continues apace

Four years ago, Christian Sewing set out to give the German bank new direction. His plan, based on income-rich services like private banking, continues to surprise and succeed. Euromoney caught up with the head of International Private Bank, Claudio de Sanctis, to discuss last year’s financials and his plans in Asia and the Middle East.

Elliot Wilson, February 13, 2023

WEALTH

How Morgan Stanley’s big bet on wealth management paid off

A decade ago, the bank opted to go long on more durable sources of income – notably wealth management. Its standout 2022 financials are a clear sign of the benefits of long-term planning.

Elliot Wilson, January 25, 2023

BANKING

China: New Henan bank aims to boost governance, cut graft at local lenders

Last year, a connected cluster of village banks in the central province of Henan suffered one of China’s worst financial scandals in years. Beijing’s reaction: to create a new state bank that will take stakes in rural financial and credit institutions with the aim of spotting and weeding out corruption and improving financial governance.

Elliot Wilson, January 19, 2023

OPINION

Shenzhen eyes starring role as premier PB hub

The southern Chinese city has set out ambitious plans to become one of the world’s top wealth-management centres. With one of China’s largest onshore pools of private wealth, there is everything to play for.

Elliot Wilson, January 19, 2023

BANKING

Hong Kong IPO bankers hope for better in 2023

Initial public offerings by Chinese firms are Hong Kong’s lifeblood, yet they were rarer than hen’s teeth in 2022. For deal flow to return, China must open up. Buckle up: things could get bumpy.

Elliot Wilson, January 11, 2023

CAPITAL MARKETS

Does the Gulf’s breakout year signal lasting change?

The Middle East’s capital markets were awash with plus-sized IPOs in 2022, with a growing belief in its future.

Elliot Wilson, December 15, 2022

FINTECH

Laos fintech gives village banks, financial inclusion a timely boost

Three years ago, LTS Ventures was tasked with building a simple microfinance platform for Laos’s army of village banks and savings unions. It took off like a rocket, boosting financial inclusion, cutting fraud. Now the firm is eyeing fresh external funding and expansion across southeast Asia.

Elliot Wilson, December 07, 2022

OPINION

China’s panicky policymakers tell banks to bail out ailing developers

Beijing recently ordered its state banks, including ICBC and Bank of China, to plough $162 billion worth of fresh credit into the country’s troubled property sector. In doing so, they look not proactive but panicky. A negative hit on lenders’ profits is inevitable.

Elliot Wilson, November 28, 2022

OPINION

China runs out of luck as anti-Covid protests bite

China is stuck. It has spent three years trying to keep Covid at bay, but now irate citizens have spilled onto the streets, questioning the competency of president Xi Jinping, and calling for an end to restrictions – just as transmission rates spike.

Elliot Wilson, November 28, 2022

OPINION

Hong Kong’s big ‘coming-in’ party points to a city losing its lustre

Last week’s financial summit aimed to show investors Hong Kong is open for business. While well attended, it also served as a reminder of how closed off the financial hub has become and how much of its lustre has been lost.

Elliot Wilson, November 07, 2022

BANKING

The financial district with the headquarters of Germany's largest business bank, Deutsche Bank , is photographed on early evening in Frankfurt

Deutsche Bank profits aided by resurgent private bank

The German bank’s strong third-quarter earnings are a partial result of forming a new international private bank division two years ago, honing it and continuing to invest in the strategy.

Elliot Wilson, November 04, 2022

WEALTH

Israel, tech and a virtuous circle of wealth

Three-quarters of a century ago, the state of Israel didn’t exist. Today, it is a leader in technologies ranging from plant-based meat to cybersecurity. Huge sums of new wealth are being created by ambitious entrepreneurs, much of it recycled into new ideas by risk-taking investors.

Elliot Wilson, November 04, 2022

CAPITAL MARKETS

Qatar eyes diversification and identity beyond the World Cup

Qatar has spent 12 years and more than $200 billion preparing for the World Cup, which kicks off on November 20. What happens when the games end and the tourists leave?

Elliot Wilson, November 03, 2022

BANKING

HSBC expands its PB reach into western China

In February, HSBC’s head of global private banking China, Jackie Mau, set out ambitious plans for the mainland. He’s proving as good as his word: the UK lender has opened two new, full-service wealth management offices in Hangzhou and Chengdu, with more to follow in 2023 and 2024.

Elliot Wilson, October 13, 2022

OPINION

China crisis: Six numbers highlight rising distress

Six seemingly random numbers, when threaded together, demonstrate that some kind of negative watershed event may not be too far off in China.

Elliot Wilson, October 04, 2022

BANKING

Judge's hammer gavel and bank note.Representation of corruption and bribery in the judiciary.

Correspondent banking faces a costly and complex future

Not long ago, correspondent banking was as basic as finance got. These days it is compliance and cost-heavy and in the crosshairs of aggressive and powerful regulators. Little wonder that so many banks are exiting small or fragile markets – actions that help their bottom line but hinder efforts at financial inclusion.

Elliot Wilson, September 28, 2022

OPINION

China’s crises threaten Xi Jinping’s legacy

China’s property sector is in freefall and Covid lockdowns are throttling growth as bad loans pile up at the banks. As president Xi Jinping prepares for an unprecedented third term, a deluge of crises threatens to destroy the country's four-decade economic miracle.

Elliot Wilson, September 27, 2022

BANKING

A European retreat opens the door to Middle East banks in Africa

As European and Chinese banks scale back in Africa to cut costs and redeploy capital to core markets, Middle East lenders are happily jumping in to fill the gap, buying assets and putting more boots on the ground as bilateral trade between the regions increases.

Elliot Wilson, September 26, 2022

CAPITAL MARKETS

Sri Lanka Sees Economic Growth From Chinese Money

Not dead yet: The future of China’s belt and road

China’s Belt and Road Initiative is as controversial now as it was a decade ago. Yet its legacy endures. Even as Beijing cuts funding to debt-saddled BRI states, the West is emulating Xi Jinping’s flagship development plan. The BRI is not dead but is quietly mutating into something much bigger and – whisper it quietly – perhaps better.

Elliot Wilson, September 22, 2022

OPINION

China’s US IPO audit climbdown signals fragility

China’s decision to let US regulators audit its New York-listed corporates is a shock. It’s a U-turn, a climbdown and a sign, more than anything, of China’s enduring financial frailty.

Elliot Wilson, September 09, 2022

WEALTH

How Abbove figured out how to show families their wealth

When the founders of Belgian digital disruptor Abbove held a meeting with 120 wealthy families, all had the same tale of woe, unable to grasp the complexity of their money and getting little help from their private bankers. Abbove set out to create a platform to let them do just that.

Elliot Wilson, September 05, 2022

CAPITAL MARKETS

Laos’s China problem is ominously similar to crisis-ridden Sri Lanka's

Laos faces bankruptcy, but like another crisis-ridden Asian state, Sri Lanka, its future is not in its own hands. That role is played by China, whose aggressive lending has helped to take one country to the brink of default and the other well past it.

Elliot Wilson, July 25, 2022

WEALTH

Credit Suisse’s PBI team and the push to serve the missing middle

Raffael Gasser is a hybrid: part Zurich wealth manager, part Silicon Valley disruptor. He was tasked with crunching data to serve ‘classic’ PB customers who sit just below the ultra-wealthy segment and are often, curiously, overlooked. Here is how he got on.

Elliot Wilson, July 19, 2022

BANKING

China banking woes mount as growth slows and more lockdowns loom

Xi Jinping wants a smooth path to his re-appointment as president in November. But his zero-Covid policy, slowing growth and bank runs in central China mean that path is looking increasingly bumpy.

Elliot Wilson, July 12, 2022

WEALTH

Altrata’s billionaire census: inequality, climate and North America

Altrata’s report is a fascinating study of the world’s billionaires and finds the 1% now has its own 1%.

Elliot Wilson, July 05, 2022

WEALTH

Citi’s Asia family office ambitions take shape

By hiring two private bankers from outside the industry to power its Asia family-office business, Citi offers further proof that its peers should take its ambitious regional wealth management plans seriously.

Elliot Wilson, June 30, 2022

OPINION

Hong Kong is stuck in a quagmire of its own making

Hong Kong’s capital markets are moribund, its government erratic and directionless, and its economy in disarray. For a city that increasingly looks like anything but Asia’s ‘world city’ is there a route back to normality?

Elliot Wilson, June 29, 2022

WEALTH

Valderrabano promotion signals Citi’s global wealth intent

By making Valentin Valderrabano COO of Citi Global Wealth, the US bank demonstrates its willingness to think outside the box when promoting from within.

Elliot Wilson, May 18, 2022

BANKING

Banking: Why everyone wants a piece of Taiwan

DBS’s purchase of Citi’s local consumer business in January was a timely reminder of Taiwan’s allure. Yes, the island lies on a geopolitical fault line and the banking sector is crowded. But it’s also profitable and now welcomes digital disruption.

Elliot Wilson, April 27, 2022

WEALTH

Lecomte on sailing, sustainability and digital disruption

BNP Paribas’s top private banker talks to Euromoney about his love of Brittany’s rough seas, the power of ESG, and digital’s ability to transform and improve every step of the client journey.

Elliot Wilson, April 22, 2022

WEALTH

HSBC private banking enters the metaverse

The UK bank’s new fund aims to deliver metaverse-themed investment opportunities to wealthy clients in Hong Kong and Singapore.

Elliot Wilson, April 11, 2022

BANKING

Banks are key to making sanctions work

The financial frontline of Russia’s war in Ukraine runs through the offices of overworked sanctions officers at banks everywhere. It is their job to freeze the accounts and assets of sanctioned oligarchs. The pressure is colossal: get it wrong or act too slow, and the impact on a bank’s brand and bottom line will be felt for years to come.

Elliot Wilson, March 29, 2022

OPINION

The two faces of Chinese ESG

China’s approach to ESG is a jumble of grandiose and contradictory state planning alongside often marvellously successful bottom-up plans by banks and fintechs to instil in consumers a more sustainable lifestyle.

Elliot Wilson, March 24, 2022

CAPITAL MARKETS

Exodus: Can Hong Kong stem the outflow of financial talent?

As Covid fatalities rise fast, senior bankers are fleeing a city that, despite today's relaxation of some rules, is increasingly cut off from the world. Will Hong Kong ever be the same again?

Elliot Wilson, March 21, 2022

OPINION

The day the sanction call comes

What practical steps do banks have to take when a client falls foul of a sanction list?

Chris Wright, March 17, 2022

OPINION

Russia attacks, investors flee. Where next for ESG?

Where do the borders of ESG lie – now and in the future? Investors from the US to China are revisiting these questions and finding thorny and often unpalatable answers, even as they dump Russian assets for ethical reasons. The results are set to shape the financial world’s relationship with sustainability for years to come.

Elliot Wilson, March 09, 2022

TREASURY

China’s CIPS trapped in Swift’s shadow

The prospect of China’s Cross-Border Interbank Payment System vying with or supplanting Swift grabbed attention in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. But CIPS isn’t ready for the big time. It is too small and underdeveloped, and is a policy vehicle dominated by Beijing for the purpose of globalizing the yuan.

Elliot Wilson, March 04, 2022

OPINION

War in Ukraine threatens BRI, disrupts China-Europe rail freight

In just a few years, the New Eurasian Land Bridge, which conveys rail freight between China and Europe, became a key part of Beijing’s fading Belt and Road Initiative. Thanks to sanctions levied against state operator Russian Railways, that vital trade link threatens to be disrupted – and possibly severed.

Elliot Wilson, March 03, 2022

FINTECH

Jackson Hole Exteriors And Landmarks - 2021

Can the Cowboy State sell crypto to the Fed?

Wyoming is wild, rugged and libertarian. It is now also America’s leading crypto state, home to thriving digital asset banks like Avanti, run by Wall Street veteran Caitlin Long. Can these young firms now get much-prized master accounts with the Federal Reserve?

Elliot Wilson, February 25, 2022

WEALTH

Deutsche Bank’s John Arena: ‘Art lending is a simple proposition’

The ‘Subject matter expert for fine art lending’ has the kind of job everyone wants: appraising art and helping the wealthy borrow against a private collection. But he tells Euromoney that it involves a great deal of time observing, listening and figuring out what the client wants.

Elliot Wilson, February 16, 2022

OPINION

BRI: Have we passed peak China?

Until recently, poor nations joined the Belt and Road Initiative to secure access to funds flowing to the vast infrastructure project. Then the funds started to dry up. Does this presage a full-scale financial pull-back from the world by China?

Elliot Wilson, February 16, 2022

WEALTH

Junior private bankers: (Not) learning on the job

Covid has been a tough time for junior private bankers. Instead of learning on the job, most have been stuck at home. The best banks have mentor systems and training programmes, but nothing can replace real face time with seniors and building trust with clients over a glass of wine.