Sarasin
4
Rabobank is inter-
nationally diversified,
has over 9 million
clients, and we see
tremendous synergy
opportunities 9
Company Pro file
Joachim Straehle
Latin America cooperation
Sarasin Poland
Sarasin is an international private bankheadquartered
in Switzerland. A Rabobank subsidiary, Sarasin's core
activities include investment advisory and asset manage
ment services for private and institutional clients.
Joachim Straehle, CEO of Sarasin:
any vendor finance competitors in China that can offer the
same. This will continue to be our focus in new business
development going forward."
In Brazil, one of the world's great F&A business countries, Rl
and DLL have both established strong business bases that
cover a number of Latin American countries. Although little
formal cross selling takes place between the two entities,
the working relationship is excellent, and opportunities are
starting to develop. Erik Peek, RI's General Manager in Brazil,
explains that within the country's rural banking sector the
two companies share information when regulatory laws
permit. "We both work efficiently within our own market
areas, and our credit analysts regularly consult each other
on the phone, as we have around 50 clients in common. On
a broader level, DLL is developing a leasing product, which
they are just about to commercialise, and that could be
extremely interesting. We don't offer leasing products, and
neither do many of our peers, and DLL's expertise within
this area could prove to be very attractive for some of our
corporate clients."
Maarten Viskaal, DLL's Senior VP Latin America, considers
cross-selling leasing products into RI's customer base as a
priority in 2010. "Besides the continuous knowledge sharing
between our businesses, and after the implementation of
our leasing product in Brazil, DLL is now ready to offer this
additional service to Rabobank's customers. All we have
to do is: formalise a cooperation and incentive structure,
provide training, and start selling."
One of the most interesting markets currently developing
business ties among group companies in Europe is Poland,
which is served by Rl, Sarasin, and Bank BGZ. In February
2009, Sarasin opened a representative office in Warsaw, and
although its development within the country is still at an
early stage, the bank's senior representative, Daniël Raemy,
believes the potential is great. "While Rl concentrates
predominantly on large commercial clients and BGZ
focuses on the retail market, Sarasin offers private banking
services and creates a complementary range of services
within the market. Rl and BGZ are already introducing us to
the private owners of their corporate clients. These people
have a need for top class Wealth Management services.
And the other way around, our clients often need financing
which they can get from Rl or BGZ. We look forward to a
long and successful cooperation with Rl and BGZ." Jacek
Szugajew, President of Rabobank Poland pointed out that
all the clients of the group will benefit from this cooperation. i
Sarasin places great importance on building long-term relationships
with its clients, providing them with sustainable financial planning,
as well as individual solutions tailored to meet personal needs.
As an international financial service provider committed to
sustainability, the Sarasin Group is represented in more than 20
locations in Europe, the Middle East and Asia. In June 2009 it had
cliënt assets of CHF 79.9 billion under management and employed
around 1,500 staff.
issue 22 THE WORD 13