Published by Gbaf News
Posted on October 1, 2013
3 min readLast updated: January 22, 2026
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Frank Martínez, Chief Executive Officer of Banco Alcalá
Finance Trends
Over the last decade, Luxembourg has overtaken Ireland to become the great “booking centre” of Europe thanks to its attractive investment vehicles such as the famous Luxembourg SICAVs (variable capital investment) and SIFs (Special Investment Funds), as well as the technological advantages provided by the ATTF (Agence de Transfert de Technologie Financière) and a regulatory framework that favours investment via “family offices” and investment firms. However, this development has not been accompanied by greater knowledge of Luxembourg’s financial industry on the part of customers in Spain, partly due to the fact that those customers operating in this market have done so through decentralised management services.
This process has developed in parallel with a trend that can be observed in the wealth management industry: the appearance of a new customer profile that demands a global range of services while maintaining the access provided by the type of manager-customer relations offered by a local organisation.
This increasingly sophisticated customer profile expects firms to provide them with financial advice and carry out operations with their assets irrespective of the country they are in. In this respect, customers perceive and increasingly value the advantages offered by those institutions that can provide a structure adapted to their needs with a management team operating in a range of markets.
Given this growing demand for more sophisticated and bespoke services, medium-sized independent private banks must progressively and resolutely aim for global management with an extensive network of local and international professionals and suppliers. The resulting synergies that can arise between the different countries are considerable.
A global range of products and services, flexibility and speed in taking decisions and handling transactions can provide the differential required by this new global customer.
Frank Martínez, Chief Executive Officer of Banco Alcalá
Finance Trends
Over the last decade, Luxembourg has overtaken Ireland to become the great “booking centre” of Europe thanks to its attractive investment vehicles such as the famous Luxembourg SICAVs (variable capital investment) and SIFs (Special Investment Funds), as well as the technological advantages provided by the ATTF (Agence de Transfert de Technologie Financière) and a regulatory framework that favours investment via “family offices” and investment firms. However, this development has not been accompanied by greater knowledge of Luxembourg’s financial industry on the part of customers in Spain, partly due to the fact that those customers operating in this market have done so through decentralised management services.
This process has developed in parallel with a trend that can be observed in the wealth management industry: the appearance of a new customer profile that demands a global range of services while maintaining the access provided by the type of manager-customer relations offered by a local organisation.
This increasingly sophisticated customer profile expects firms to provide them with financial advice and carry out operations with their assets irrespective of the country they are in. In this respect, customers perceive and increasingly value the advantages offered by those institutions that can provide a structure adapted to their needs with a management team operating in a range of markets.
Given this growing demand for more sophisticated and bespoke services, medium-sized independent private banks must progressively and resolutely aim for global management with an extensive network of local and international professionals and suppliers. The resulting synergies that can arise between the different countries are considerable.
A global range of products and services, flexibility and speed in taking decisions and handling transactions can provide the differential required by this new global customer.
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