Swiss attract less foreign cash from rich clients as Credit Suisse crash weighs: survey

SWITZERLAND is becoming less attractive to wealthy clients, with a decline in assets managed by the country’s banks and financial advisers, according to a study published on Wednesday (Oct 23).

Foreign assets under management fell to US$2.174 trillion in 2023 from US$2.624 trillion in 2020 when the survey was last carried out, the study by consultants Deloitte said.

Last year’s crash of Credit Suisse has shaken the confidence of wealthy clients from Europe and the Middle East, Deloitte said, with some doubts arising about the stability of the Swiss banking centre.

Asset flows from both regions have declined since the crisis last year and have not fully recovered, Deloitte said.

Meanwhile other Swiss advantages such as low taxes, legal certainty and neutrality have become less important, the consultancy added.

Although Switzerland retained its crown as the world’s largest location for offshore wealth, its share of the US$10 trillion in offshore managed wealth dipped to 21.4 per cent from 23.7 per cent in 2020.

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Rivals are also catching up, with Britain – the world’s second biggest manager for offshore wealth – now overseeing US$2.166 trillion in foreign assets, and the US – in third place – managing US$2.109 trillion, the survey shows.

Hong Kong and Singapore, the other two locations in the global top five, are not far behind, although Singapore was under pressure after seeing a decline in assets under management since 2020.

“The US is in a strong starting position,” said Patrik Spiller, who leads Deloitte’s wealth management industry practice in Switzerland.

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The US had a high quality of asset managers, a strong capital market and regulatory and tax advantages, the report said.

For example the US also does not participate in the automatic exchange of information on financial accounts, which is intended to prevent cross-border tax evasion, which gives it advantage compared to other centres, the report said. REUTERS