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Meet the Guernsey team...
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special
What's News Issue 9 October 1997
A
Carol Friend (left), Chantelle Arundell and
Liz Morellec gatbering team spirit.
A
Tony Blondel in the spot light.
management, Van Beek's role
is very much marketing of the
bank's Guernsey offering.
'Trust is one service we have
here and which I believe will
grow tremendously over the
coming years,' he says.
'Michael and his team will teil
you exactly what a trust can
offer (see sidebar). This
instrument is becoming more
popular, but it is still not a
widely known or used tooi. We
have an advantage in that
traditional private banking
countries like Switzerland and
Luxembourg don't have the
special legislation that make
trusts so attractive. That is
why they come to us or to
Jersey. So you get a situation
where the banking may still be
done in Zurich, but the trust
construction takes place here.'
ON THE MAP
Oddly enough, the fact that
the best possible return on
those assets, so we have to be
very competitive in both
pricing and service.' So how
does the private banking win
new clients? 'I think all our
private banking colleagues
around the world would agree
that word-of-mouth is one of
the major - and best - ways we
acquire new clients. If you can
build a cliënt base in that way,
then you must be doing
something right,' says private
banker Ian Giles. 'But we're
also trying to do more
marketing through the
network as well - Ronald has
been travelling a lot lately to
put us on the map.'
BANK SECRECY
Of course, both Guernsey and
neighbouring Jersey have built
a real reputation as private
banking and offshore centres.
Among the reasons for its
those funds with us,' Carvill
confirms, 'then not only
Rabobank, but I believe every
other bank in the island would
turn it down. It is that kind of
business style which gives
customers confidence.'
CUSTOMER APPROACH
Fionnuala and Ian have been
at the heart of reorganization
which got off the ground early
this year. 'What we've done,'
they explain, 'is regroup our
people to make even better use
of their skills.' Rather than
imposing a strict division
between front and back
offices, Guernsey has
interwoven both tasks to
create a solid, but flexible
support group to handle
customer needs. 'If we make
any distinction at all, then now
it is between cliënt support and
bank support,' says Chris
Corbin who heads up the bank
MATTERS OF TRUST
Dating back to the middle
ages, the trust has long been a
typically Anglo-Saxon method
of protecting assets. But, as the
trust team in Guernsey
explains, the concept is
catching on around the world.
What is a trust? Why could it
be interesting for potential
and existing private banking
clients? And how does it work?
Our trust experts Michael
Jephcote-Wareham, Jacqueline
Hunterand Brendon Francis
have all the answers.
Guernsey also appears to be
that a good private banker m
knows back-office procedures.™
'Personally, I'm a great believer
in thorough know-how right
down the line,' Carvill agrees.
'So we hope that cliënt support
will prove a route for our
Online witb Nicolla Tanguy and
Sharon Clancy (front).
Y
our trust people are very
successful does not
automatically mean a sinecure
for the private bankers one
floor down. 'We have to work
very hard to win their
business,' says head of private
banking Fionnuala Carvill.
'Just because they have assets
under management doesn't
mean we will get the mandate
to handle them. As trustees,
they are legally obliged to get
success are 'bank
confidentiality and tight
regulations,' says Carvill.
'Reputation is everything and
the industry here is focused on
maintaining that reputation.'
Banking authorities and the
banks themselves are
continually alert to possible
attempts at money laundering
and fraud. 'If someone were to
walk in here with a suitcase
full of cash and ask to deposit
support side and is also
responsible for IT. The role of
cliënt support speaks for itself,
but the team is also keen to
promote more cliënt contact
through increased efficiency.
'The restructuring and the
enhancement in system
applications mean we are now
better positioned to approach
customers proactively than
before,' says Carvill. At the
same time, the consensus in
people here into positions as
private bankers.' There may be
a need for more when
Guernsey's increased
marketing efforts around the
network begin to pay off. With
a new staff structure in place
and a firm commitment to a
niche market and to trust
activities, the bank in this
special jurisdiction is perfectly
positioned to grow its
business.
