The Swiss entities of UBS and Credit Suisse could merge as of July 1, announced the director of UBS Switzerland Sabine Keller-Busse. The merger will lead to numerous layoffs and the closure of several dozen branches in Switzerland… except in Geneva.
The merger of the two banks is expected to cause nearly 1,000 job cuts linked to activities in Switzerland, confirmed Sabine Keller-Busse in the NZZ. It is also accompanied by a significant reduction in the number of branches. According to the director of UBS Switzerland, the aim is for the merged bank to have only 194 branches in Switzerland. Currently, UBS has 190 and Credit Suisse 95.
Throughout this reorganization, the Geneva region should be largely spared from the harshest measures and could even have more agencies after the merger. Indeed, Geneva is a strategic canton for the three-key bank.
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A strong, essential presence in Geneva
Where competition is particularly acute, a strong presence is essential, confirms Jean-François Beausoleil, regional manager of UBS in Geneva. “After Zurich, Geneva is the most important financial center. We have enormous competition there, with 85 banking establishments which are established in Geneva to provide all the financial services in the canton. In addition, we have all the wealth management for customers domiciled in Switzerland and for all foreign customers who have an account in Switzerland. There is a large customer potential, which requires a large presence.
There is a huge amount of activity downtown
A sign that integration is going rather well in Geneva, Jean-François Beausoleil is accompanied in his mission by Pascal Besnard, former boss of Credit Suisse in Geneva. The person who is now responsible for private clients at UBS believes that maintaining a strong agency network in Geneva is fully justified.
“In the Franco-Valdo-Genevois basin, there are around a million inhabitants who need banking services. There is an extremely important passage, particularly in Cité and Cornavin. In the figures, these two agencies combine more 1,070,000 transactions per year, 240 daily appointments and more than 4,000 visits to the safe per month. There is therefore enormous activity in the city center”, explains the man who was also the former president of Servette. FC.
“You have to be present” for wealth management
The Geneva market is also distinguished by its tradition in wealth management and the strong presence of renowned establishments exclusively active in this field. For Dusan Isakov, professor of finance and corporate governance at the University of Fribourg, it is unthinkable for UBS “not to be there”.
You have to be present to offer private clients services that others will not be able to offer.
“In Geneva, there are historic players who are there in this field, there is also a significant international clientele. So there is know-how and for players like UBS and Credit Suisse, who represent very Swiss brands , it’s essential, you have to be present to attract clients in the field of private banking and be able to offer them services that others will not be able to offer”, explains the Friborg researcher.
Because even if the new UBS wants to refocus on wealth management on a global level, it remains an essential universal bank in Switzerland with a great diversity in the services offered. “For Geneva, we have a market share that is truly predominant in the credit and mortgage sector. Since the integration of Credit Suisse, we have a market share of around 49%, which is unique, since the Swiss average of two establishments are at 26%”, explains Jean-François Beausoleil.
Few duplicates, therefore few layoffs?
This special place that Geneva occupies could also protect it from future massive job cuts planned by the big bank. “In Geneva, we have the particularity of being a region where we are very close to the customers with many employees who take care of them. We have very few ‘back office’ services, so we had little duplication in people’s functions”, further reveals the regional manager.
Geneva therefore remains a somewhat special case on the map of the merger between UBS and Credit Suisse, although the merger between the two banking establishments still arouses a fair amount of mistrust and fear at all levels.
Radio subject: Sylvie Belzer
Web article: Jérémie Favre
