UBS Starts Regional Private Markets Groups to Boost Alternatives

(Bloomberg) -- UBS Group AG is setting up European and Asian teams to bring more private market deals to its wealthy clients as part of a global push to boost its offering beyond regular securities.

Giuseppe De Filippo will lead distribution teams for Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Switzerland, according to a memo sent to staff on Tuesday. Enrico Mattoli will oversee distribution efforts for the Asia Pacific region, said the memo, which was confirmed by a UBS spokesman.

The announcement follows the creation of a similar group in the U.S. and is the next step in efforts by the world’s largest wealth manager to increase business with its multimillionaire and billionaire clients. Many of them seek access to private equity, real estate and other unlisted assets, which are typically sourced through the investment bank.

The regional teams will bring together employees from the wealth management and investment banking businesses with the aim of coordinating resources. The two businesses still need to iron out how to split fees, said people familiar with the discussions, who asked to remain anonymous disclosing internal negotiations.

Wealth management co-heads Iqbal Khan and Tom Naratil early this year announced a restructuring of their business to cut costs, speed up decision making and help eliminate time-consuming negotiations between wealth managers and the investment bank.

Read more about UBS private markets efforts here.

To help with collaboration, the regional private market teams will also have a reporting line into the investment bank. In addition, UBS has set up committees for each major region so that employees in both parts of the bank can work together on prioritizing deals, resolving conflicts and coordinating resources.

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