Swiss bank sets its sights on growth in regional markets

Few banks have emerged unscarred from the global financial meltdown, but Credit Suisse, which operates the second-largest private bank in Switzerland, remains resilient.

Walter Berchtold, chief executive of Credit Suisse's private banking arm, is optimistic about the business. 'We expect an average growth in NNA [net new assets] of 6 per cent in our wealth management business, and we expect growth to be much higher in Asia. We target 15 to 20 per cent,' he said.

Berchtold has good reason for his high expectations. Credit Suisse boasted NNA of 41.6 billion Swiss francs (HK$302 billion) in private banking last year. Its private banking business in Asia-Pacific accounted for 11.5 billion Swiss francs of the new assets, recording year-on-year growth of 40 per cent, making it the world's fastest-growing region.

The bank cranked up its global expansion in 2004 and the trend was reflected in its hiring of relationship managers. From 2007 to the end of the first half of last year, 550 of the 560 net new relationship managers hired were for international wealth management businesses outside Switzerland. The bank has also added 22 locations in 16 markets since 2007, boosting the number of wealth management locations to 120 outside Switzerland.

Private banking business models, Berchtold said, will become more global. They are edging towards onshore or even multishore services at the clients' countries of origin.

Global expansion resulted in Credit Suisse adopting an integrated banking approach, he said, which was essential for capturing the emerging markets of Asia, Latin America and the Middle East.