Friday, February 7, 2020

League Table: Switzerland's Hottest Banker? (2019 edition)

I was not aware this was a feature of FinNews.ch.
I must say, we appear to have some of the same diversity issues that Sweden's SEB suffers from.

From FinNews (en):
Back by popular demand, finews.com presents the third edition Switzerland's most attractive bankers.
Is a list reducing men to their looks even appropriate in this day and age of #metoo and diversity awareness? finews.com underwent some soul-searching and concluded that the male-dominated banking industry in Switzerland itself still celebrates the beauty ideal – intensely so.
Luxury men’s designer Hackett enjoys prime Paradeplatz space and men's salons have shot up around the banking district: to be sure, bankers still preen with appearance, attire, and accessories. These Swiss banker beefcakes combine brains and intellectual brawn with ease on the eye – and the list is as subjective as it is tongue-in-cheek.

Without further ado, the finews.com hotties, in no particular order of hotness:
12. Saman Habibian, Pictet
Saman Habibian 500
One of Julius Baer’s top bankers for the Middle East, the Swiss native was among a raft of defections to Pictet this year. The Swiss native, who is fluent in Persian, began his career at Credit Suisse in Singapore – like new Pictet partner Boris Collardi. Habibian, who spent a total of eight years at Julius Baer, interrupted by a brief stint at Safra Sarasin, is credited with building Julius Baer’s business in Bahrain.
11. Marc Pictet, Pictet
Marc Pictet 500
The 46-year-old represents the eighth generation to govern the bank. Despite his relatively young age, Pictet represents the old-guard – not least because he bears the name of the family bank. The Geneva wealth manager has experienced considerable upheaval in recent months: Collardi has poached dozens of bankers, many from his former shop, Julius Baer; a long-standing employee was caught in an alleged embezzlement scheme; and Pictet is switching senior partners later this year, in what is viewed as a nod to the subtle power shift towards its asset managers. Marc Pictet, responsible for the Genevan firm’s offices in Basel, Frankfurt, Munich, Stuttgart, and Zurich, devotes some of his private time to a local wildlife conservation organization.
10. Ralph Ebert, BIL
ralph ebert 550
Like any good compliance banker, the German lawyer keeps his cards close to his chest. At Credit Suisse, Ebert coordinated the Swiss bank’s response to the FIFA and Petrobras scandals – and bedded down the lessons learned. Ebert just jumped from Indosuez to Banque Internationale de Luxembourg – his third job in as many years. He has spent the bulk of his career in Paris and Geneva, with stints in Zurich.
9. Nicolas Syz, Banque Syz
NicolasSyz 500
The 34-year-old son of Swiss banker Eric Syz had a huge year – as did his older (and equally appealing) brother, Marc Syz. The elder Syz had pegged both Nicolas and Marc for leadership roles in a succession-related revamp last year. Then this year, Nicolas was vaulted to the helm of wealth management at Syz, which his father founded in 1996. The Swiss bank is now a family affair: mother Suzanne Syz, a jewelry designer, joined its board earlier this year amid takeover speculation. Whether Nicolas or Marc – or neither – make the grade to take over from Eric Syz is unclear. Nicolas is playing is cool: «There is no clear road map for succession,» he told a Swiss daily last year.
8. David Schmid, Leonteq
David Schmid 500
The 37-year-old has quietly advanced to one of the structured product boutique’s most valuable players. Long a close associate of co-founder Jan Schoch, Schmid was part of Leonteq’s go-go years – and survived its fall to earth. He spent two years during Leonteq’s most tumultuous period in Singapore, building up the company’s Asia business. He returned in 2017, just in time to join top management as investment solutions head. His importance to the newly-chastened firm is underscored by his 2.7 million Swiss franc ($2 million) payday last year – more than CEO Lukas Ruflin (a major shareholder, Ruflin also earns dividends) took home.
7. Yves Robert-Charrue, Julius Baer
Yves Robert Charrue 515
The 46-year-old has not had a great year: he was passed over when Philipp Rickenbacher shocked the Swiss banking guild by winning the top Julius Baer job last week. The father of two and married to a lawyer, Robert-Charrue has had the somewhat thankless job of running Europe for the last three years. The region accounts for roughly one-quarter of the wealth manager’s assets, but is not exactly a growth market for the bank. The biggest projects launched by Robert-Charrue, a musician who plays guitar and piano, are Germany and the U.K, where he has the go-ahead to pour money into hiring sprees. The payoff is as yet uncertain....
....MORE

And where, you ask, is the Sarasin contingent?
Apparently after the acquisition by Safra they canned all the male models.