Swiss bank moved to open office in Bangkok

As a sign that domestic financial regulations are loosening up, a Swiss private bank has opened shop in Thailand.

EFG Investment Advisory Thailand is a subsidiary of EFG International, headquartered in Zurich, which has recently expanded rapidly in the Asia-Pacific region, and whose revenue from the region grew by 50 per cent last year.

EFG International's chairman, Jean-Pierre Cuoni, said Thailand was the first market in Southeast Asia, excluding Singapore, in which EFG International now had a comprehensive private bank, to offer investment advisory services.

However, just three days ago, the group also opened a representative office in Manila, the Philippines.

EFG Bank Asia-Pacific's chief executive Robert Chiu said the Singapore office would provide logistical support and products to the Thai operation, which would only invest onshore or through domestic vehicles.

"The capital market in Thailand is changing and the government has the will to reform," Chiu said. With the economy picking up, liberalisation in place and investors allowed more money to invest offshore, Chiu said EFG International could offer the know-how to match the needs of high-net-worth individuals.

EFG Investment Advisory also targets institutional investors with more than Bt30 million.

Without the legal status of a private bank, EFG Investment Advisory Thailand is not allowed to do any booking.

But if the conditions are right in the next two years, the firm will consider applying for the licences to become a fully fledged private bank, Cuoni said.

EFG International's deputy chief executive James Lee said the Swiss bank stood out because of its neutral stance towards the "multiplying myriad" of financial products. "We have no pressure to sell financial products to our customers," he said.

Formed in 1995 by a small group of private bankers and the backing of Greek oil and shipping magnate John Latsis - who now owns almost half of the company - EFG Bank European Financial Group has a registered capital of US$6.3 billion (Bt201 billion). The group owns 48 per cent of EFG International, which reported a net profit last year of 332 million Swiss francs (Bt10.28 billion).

Since listing on the Swiss Exchange in 2005, the company has expanded into 30 countries with more than 50 offices.

The expansion spree continues. EFG International will soon finalise a partnership with a financial advisory firm in Shanghai, and has received approval to open an office in India.

Lee said that expansion had been organic because of the company's emphasis on assembling the right teams. Unlike most banks, EFG's front office teams came first.

"We don't hire McKinsey or [Boston Consulting] to do a strategy and then call up headhunters to help us assemble a team in country A," he said. "That means spending a lot of money."