Private bankers -
WHAT IT TAKES TO BE ONE
N
private banking
Qj
10
WHAT'S News Issue 8 August 1996
By definition, private bankers are loathe to discuss either their clients or their
affairs. Confidentiality means they never speak even generally about the
customers they serve. What they can and do talk about easily is what being a
private banker involves.We asked some of the senior relationship managers
what it takes...
'My clients have my home telephone
number, they know when and where I'm on
vacation - and they certainly call me then.
You have to build up a kind of relationship
with clients that is at least almost
friendship.
You handle very personal affairs for that
cliënt and the bottom line is that he comes
first - then the bank. If you have no clients,
you have no bank...'
Unlike many of his colleagues, Renato
Vanotti who focuses on clients in the
Middle East, came to private banking via a
rather circuitous route. 'I actually trained
as an accountant,' he says. 'Then 1 became
operations manager with the subsidiary of
a large Saudi bank here in Switzerland. My
job there involved implementing the
private banking administration system. I
got talking to colleagues and someone
suggested I may be good with clients. That
is how I started.' According to Vanotti,
private banking is anything but glamorous.
'You have to be prepared to be on call 24
hours a day - and not just for banking
matters. I have clients who call me at home
asking if I will arrange anything from hotel
reservations to private schools for their
children. As their private banker, you do it
for them. You also have to have a good
general knowledge of current affairs, even
sport. If you're meeting with a cliënt, you
usually find you spend 10 minutes on the
portfolio and the rest of the time on
general conversation.'
Hans-Dieter Gruber
'Anyone who wants to become a private
banker must be prepared to put in 365
days a year,' says Hans-Dieter Gruber.
His target market is the German-speaking
countries and he ensures he is available for
his clients around the clock.
Daniël Nordmann, whose cliënt base is
drawn primarily from the international
Jewish community, emphasizes that even
though private banking is the main service
he offers to clients, cross-selling
opportunities shouldn't be underestimated.
'A lot of our clients are involved in
business. Sometimes a cliënt will have a
transaction he wants to do, or introducés
a contact to us. Here in Zurich, we have
our own credit committee and we examine
the risks and rewards. If we think it is
worthwhile, we go into it more deeply.
You should, of course, be conservative and
look at every propsal very carefully, but
we shouldn't decline a cross-selling
opportunity sight unseen...'
Renato
Vanotti
PRIVATE BANKERS
Hoewel het vak van de private banker vol glamor lijkt is de werkelijkheid anders. De private bankers staan ook in hun privé tijd
klaar voor hun klanten, desnoods 365 dagen per jaar, 24 uur per dag. De speciale klanten beschikken dan ook over hun privé
telefoonnummer en er ontstaat vaak, door de zeer persoonlijke zaken die ze bespreken, na verloop van tijd een soort vriendschap. Het belangrijkste
punt vooreen private banker is discretie. Over een individuele klant wordt niet gesproken.
Daniël Nordmann