PBI’s London Awards were announced on Thursday at a ceremony in London’s West End, which recognised the best private banks, wealth managers and vendors in the UK and Europe.
The awards followed PBI’s London conference on the same day, which identified some of the major trends affecting private banking and wealth management in the UK and Europe.
These awards are an extension of the well established Private Banker International Global Awards that take place in Singapore every year.
All of PBI’s awards undergo a rigorous selection process before being appointed by an independent judging panel.
Private Banker International London Awards:
Outstanding Private Bank – UK – Domestic Clients
Kleinwort Hambros
Private banking in the UK is more than just about London. That’s why the winner of this award has expanded beyond the M25 (London’s ring road) with offices in Newbury, Cambridge, Leeds and Edinburgh. These offices have aided Kleinwort Hambros to grow its client book through referrals – the main reason that almost every client has joined the bank over the last 12 months.
Outstanding Private Bank – UK – Crown Dependencies
Kleinwort Hambros
Kleinwort Hambros has boosted its business in the UK’s Crown Dependencies with a string of hires. Late last year Matt Falla joined as the new head of its private banking business in Guernsey. Barely three months later Christophe Huchet was hired as the new CEO of its Channel Islands business.
Outstanding Private Bank – Western European Region
BNP Paribas Wealth Management
Being part of the Eurozone’s largest bank is not enough for BNP Paribas’s wealth management arm. Last year BGL BNP Paribas bought ABN AMRO’s Luxembourg arm while BNP Paribas Wealth Management made further advances in Germany announcing plans to hire 150 extra employees by 2020 (and picking up PBI’s ‘Outstanding Private Bank – Germany – International Players’ award on the way).
Outstanding Private Bank – Eastern European Region
Credit Suisse
Since creating a standalone Central and Eastern European unit in August last year, Credit Suisse has consolidated its presence in the region. The Swiss bank returned to profit for the first time since 2014 late last year following a three-year restructuring program that has set it up for further growth in Eastern Europe.
Outstanding Private Banking Relationship Service & Engagement
Nykredit
Last year’s winner of this award has once again impressed judges with its focus on building rapport with its customers. Nykredit takes great care in recruiting its advisors – focusing on, what it calls EQ (Emotional Quotient) rather than IQ – creating intelligent technology platforms and delivering an all-round, first-class service.
Outstanding Wealth management Technology Provider
Avaloq
Avaloq has had a busy 12 months, signing up 10s of new clients, rolling out new features using microservice technology and artificial intelligence and improving its own bottom line. A line-up of further enhancements for the rest of the year has won the judges over.
Outstanding Front Office Digital Solutions Provider
Wealth Dynamics
Its three offerings – WDX1, ENGAGE and WDX ONBOARD – ensure that Wealth Dynamics supports a full client lifecycle at the private banks and wealth managers it serves. During a period when the industry is experiencing such a huge generational transfer of wealth, these tools will prove critical to organisations managing that transaction.
Outstanding Private Banking Technology Platform Offering
Appway
Helping private banks and wealth managers smooth the onboarding bottleneck, Appway has made several developments to its offering. These include ‘onboarding for wealth’ in 2017, which automates compliance checks and increases front and back office efficiency, and ‘regulatory reviews’ in order to monitor the all-important KYC and AML risks.
Outstanding Private Bank for Next Generation Proposition
Societe Generale
When it comes to next generation planning, there is no such thing as a one-stop-shop solution. That’s why Societe Generale produces a number of bespoke events for families and even for one generation of a single family. These sessions are all designed to weed out topical issues and common problems, so the advisor who looks after the entire family can ensure harmony of the solutions deployed.
Outstanding Private Bank for UHNW Clients
REYL Group
In just 10 years, REYL has grown from its Geneva routes into a truely global private bank with a presence in nine countries. But in the last 18 months alone, the Swiss bank has launched several services specifically aimed at the UHNW client. These include Hermance Capital Partners, which gives UHNWIs access to high-performing investment solutions in private equity, private debt and private real estate. REYL then partnered with Aspiration, an online banking company, in a further step in building out digital banking for UHNWIs.
Outstanding Private Bank for Philanthropy Proposition
C. Hoare & Co.
Many private banks talk about philanthropy but surprisingly few practice what they preach. This family-owned bank does: 10% of its annual profits go into its charitable trust, the Golden Bottle Trust. Since the trust was established in 1985 it has made grants totalling £23 million and has placed a quarter of its assets into impact investments.
It is not just the bank that is leading by example, but its staff as well. Between them, they raised £240,000 for charity in 2017, with every £1 matched by the Golden Bottle Trust.
When it comes to managing clients’ own giving, C. Hoare & Co. knows what it is doing: It was the first UK private bank to launch a donor-advised fund (DAF), the giving vehicle that is now commonplace throughout British banks.
Its clients, therefore, know full well they are dealing with the experts when it comes to philanthropy.
Source : verdict.co.uk
