Swiss asset managers battle the crisis online

Battling the crisis with more transparency: Swiss banks and asset managers are becoming more transparent and thereby compete on the Internet for potential clients from all over the world.  The  Swiss  financial  service  providers  are convinced  that they have  a lot to offer, even without the banking secrecy.

Swiss asset management,  the supporting  pillar of the Swiss financial center, is in the midst of a crisis. The industry is struggling with numerous challenges: increasing costs and sinking margins, a redefinition  of  the  Swiss  banking  secrecy  looming  ahead  and  international  competition  that  is becoming stronger. As approximately  half of all assets managed in Switzerland  are from abroad, offshore asset management is of particular importance. However, Switzerland only lies just ahead of London,  Singapore  and Hong Kong when it comes to offshore  asset management  and might lose its dominant position in the near future. Client behavior has also changed: an Internet-affine generation of investors also demands more transparency in asset management.

Swiss banks show what they are made of

The contact of Swiss financial service providers with new media has been very limited so far. Often, the provider websites did not even feature information on the type and range of their services. This might be changing now. As an answer to the current challenges,  more and more banks are now willing  to publicly  reveal  more  about  their  company  on the  World  Wide  Web.  For  example,  an increasing   number   agrees   to  give   more   precise   information   about   their   company   on  the independent  information  and  intermediation  portal  assetinum.com.   The  Swiss  financial  center needs to look ahead. It is now important to distinguish oneself from the competition transparently with own services. As a cross-border medium, the Internet is an ideal tool therefore.

More transparency and more competition

With  growing  transparency  comes  increased  competition.  This  is  a  positive  development  for investors, as they can expect rising service quality and sinking fees. However, the condition is that the investors have an accordingly neutral comparison possibility at hand. assetinum.com offers this possibility: thanks to the independent Swiss online portal, international investors can filter, sort and select asset managers  for consultation  requests according to various criteria such as specialized services  and asset  classes.  More than 200 notable  Swiss  banks  as well as independent  asset managers  and family offices  – verified  by assetinum.com  – can be found among  the providers. Investors  can obtain information  on consultant  portraits,  investment  strategies,  amount of assets under management or the fee structures of the providers.

Swiss «beauty contest» for international investors

Investors have the opportunity to request free and non-binding consultations with several banks or independent asset managers of their choice quickly and without effort. After the first consultations, investors  have a solid basis of comparison  for their selection  of the suitable  Swiss  bank or the suitable  independent  asset manager.  Although  the asset management  industry  usually calls this kind of provider competition a «beauty contest», it is not the best look that is decisive here, but the best consultation  offer.  New  international  clients  are the «trophy»  for the providers.  Banks  and asset managers must state which client domiciles they can work for. Therefore, different providers
are available for consultations, depending on the investorsʼ domicile.

Benjamin Manz, managing partner of assetinum.com

About assetinum.com:
assetinum.com is an independent Swiss information portal for investors. A special focus is given to asset  management   and  investment   consultancy:   apart  from  up-to-date   information,   studies, background articles and news, investors benefit from a decision-making tool on assetinum.com that enables  the selection  of suitable  Swiss  banks,  verified  independent  asset managers  and family offices.  Investors  in  Switzerland  and  from  abroad  benefit  from  free  consultations  with  several selected providers, and have a good basis of comparison thanks to the received offers.