"We’re in the process of looking at selling our Swiss private bank," a spokesperson was quoted by as saying. The move is "in line with the continued efforts to realign" that business, the spokesperson said, who declined to comment further.
Investec Bank (Switzerland), which has offices in Zurich and Geneva, has hired Fenchurch Advisory Partners to advise it on the sale, the Mail on Sunday reported.
Investec, which owns a private banking business and money manager that operates in South Africa, Australia and the UK, is moving away from lending to conserve capital while investing in its asset-management and wealth business to improve earnings.
As part of its growth strategy, the bank is now focusing more on lucrative Asian market, particularly on Indian and Chinese market.
Recently, the bank has acquired Access Capital in Hong Kong and has received regulatory approval in South Africa to set up an advisory business in India.
To expand its wealth division, the bank also bought UK fund manager Rensburg Sheppards, last year.
