Not far from retirement age, Ulrich Koerner has once again taken up the hottest post in Swiss Banking, Boris Collardi was no longer on the sidelines - and the Zeltner name is once again making an appearance. The past few months have been marked by a series of surprising comebacks.
1. Boris Collardi – A Thoroughbred Who Won't be Tamed
(Image: Keystone)
It was clear to everyone that thoroughbred private banker Boris Collardi (pictured above) had lots of work left to do. After the scandal of his resignation as a partner at the Geneva private bank Pictet, the enterprising Frenchman was elected to the Board of Directors of the Zurich private bank EFG International in October, having already acquired a 3.6 percent stake in the firm in April for an estimated 80 million francs.
Simply attending meetings and collecting royalties is not in Collardi's nature. Bold moves by EFG can be expected in 2023.
2. Alexander Classen Lends a Hand Once Again
(Image: EFG)
Besides Collardi, there has been another prominent addition to the EFG Board of Directors with Alexander «Alex» Classen (pictured above) elected as the new chairman in October. He replaced the equally well-known Peter Fanconi, who trimmed back his considerable portfolio of mandates. Classen is considered one of the most experienced private banking managers.
Among other things, he worked in Switzerland as market head for Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, then as CEO prepared the international business of Bank Coutts for sale to its Geneva-based rival UBP, and acted as head of HSBC in Switzerland since 2018. Classen is familiar with both restructuring and expansion, and now it remains to be seen how well he works in tandem with Collardi.
3. Ulrich Koerner in the Hottest Chair in Swiss Banking
(Image: CS)
Two chief executives and three presidents in three years is a record that would probably put off some younger generations from leading Credit Suisse. Not so Ulrich Koerner (pictured above). In July, he was elected as CEO of the troubled bank, taking on the most dangerous post currently to be found in Swiss banking.
Since then, he ordered a radical overhaul of the bank, including the elimination of 9,000 jobs and the dismantling of the investment bank, while raising 4 billion francs in new capital. The Swiss-German dual citizen, regarded as highly intelligent but aloof, has put out some of the first fires, but the institute continues to smolder. The task now is to build trust and stabilize the bleeding of assets and employees.
4. Lukas Gaehwiler Provides the «Swissness» Factor
(Image: UBS)
Much has been written in the past week about the supposed power tussle between new UBS Chairman Colm Kelleher and bank CEO Ralph Hamers. But in fact, the leadership of Switzerland's largest bank is designed as a triumvirate: Lukas Gaehwiler (pictured above) has been acting vice chairman since April, acting as a Swiss counterweight to the Irishman and the Dutchman.
Brought to UBS by ex-UBS chief Oswald Gruebel from rival Credit Suisse in 2010, he headed the latter's Swiss business until 2016 and then chaired the UBS Switzerland unit. He is very well connected in the business world, with posts at the Digital Switzerland association and board of directors mandates at media group Ringier and aircraft manufacturer Pilatus. He also represents UBS in the relevant industry associations.
5. Dirk Klee Brings Banking to Bitcoin Suisse
(Image: Bitcoin Suisse)
At Bitcoin Suisse, Switzerland's largest and oldest crypto broker, things went from bad to worse around the turn of last year. First, the flamboyant founder Niklas Nikolajsen withdrew from the presidency.
Then in March, UBS alumnus Dirk Klee (pictured above), replaced Arthur Vayloyan as CEO. Amid the deepest crypto winter, he worked with the staff to make the leap from startup to industry player. Klee's next step is to tackle what Nikolajsen and Vayloyan failed to do, which is to obtain a banking license from the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (Finma).
6. Erich Pfister – Another Tricky Responsibility
(Image: Cramer & Cie)
«Erich Pfister (pictured above) wants to know it again,» finews.ch wrote in March when it became known he took over as CEO at the Geneva-based private bank Cramer & Cie, which had been without a permanent CEO for years. The last boss, Cédric Anker, had thrown in the towel in 2019 after only about one and a half years in office.
The mid-sized private bank has been struggling with a turnaround for years, and many wondered how long major shareholder Massimo Esposito and his investment company Norinvest would continue to stand idly by. With Pfister, Cramer now has a bank manager with three decades of experience, at Credit Suisse, the defunct Falcon Private Bank, and most recently as head of Oddo BHF in Switzerland. Once again, he has not shied away from taking on a tricky responsibility.
7. Thomas Zeltner Follows in his Father's Footsteps
(Image: Zeltner & Co)
Two years ago, the well-known former UBS and Quintet manager Juerg Zeltner passed away. In July, his son Thomas Zeltner (pictured above) surprisingly brought the family name back into play on the Swiss financial scene. Together with co-founders Kim Wirth and Holger Schultes and a team that can be counted on two hands, he is working to build up Zurich-based asset manager Zeltner & Co.
The much sought-after Finma license is already in his pocket, and he has some unconventional ideas in mind, as he explained to finews.ch. He is explicitly concerned with keeping his father's legacy alive, even if he has to follow in deep footsteps to do so. «He set the benchmark very high for me,» Thomas said of his father. «But I'm an athlete, I work every day to catch up with that benchmark.»
