He got the private banker available. The shipping magnate then introduced the private banker to friends. Those were your relationships. After the merger, the bank tried to standardize its approach and introduced geographic and other specializations. Private bankers were reorganized into country teams, specializing in, say, Latin American or Asian clients.
Teams also specialize in sports and entertainment figures.
He added, ''People prefer a counterpart that is familiar with their culture or professional environment.'' - THE bank also removed some less wealthy clients from the Swiss private bank and relegated them to the affluent area of its domestic bank. Some account officers in private banking moved there too. The result were defections of private bankers to other institutions or to independent practices, taking enough client money so that UBS proved to have a very small net inflow of new funds and clients, Mr. Leonard said. Compounding the problem was the private bank's proprietary asset management style. Clients were encouraged to use proprietary portfolios that emphasized a value-investing approach.