Swiss financial services firm Vontobel has acquired the US-based private client portfolio from Lombard Odier for an undisclosed fee.
The clients will be served by its wholly-owned, US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)-registered subsidiary Vontobel Swiss Wealth Advisors (VSWA).
More than CHF730m (£559m, $730m, €632m) of assets under management have been transferred to Vontobel as a result of the transaction.
In addition to wealth management clients, VSWA has taken over all of Lombard Odier’s private clients who opted to switch from their previous brokerage mandate to an advisory or wealth management relationship as part of the transaction.
In total, Vontobel now manages around CHF4.5bn of assets for North American wealth management clients.
US agreement
Swiss wealth firm Lombard Odier and Vontobel have also entered into a cooperation agreement, where Lombard Odier will recommend VSWA as the preferred partner for private clients based in the US.
“The acquisition of the US-based private clients portfolio of Lombard Odier gives us the opportunity to further expand the basis for our organic growth in the world’s largest wealth management market,” said Georg Schubiger, head of Vontobel Wealth Management. “The positive responses from clients in recent months are confirmation that the acquisition of the US-based private clients portfolio from Lombard Odier is the right decision.
“We are especially pleased that many former brokerage clients have decided in favour of the investment advisory offering and expertise of an internationally active Swiss wealth manager.”
VSWA has client relationship management teams in New York, Geneva and Zurich.
In addition to being a SEC-registered investment adviser, VSWA has exempt international adviser status in the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, Nova Scotia, Ontario and Quebec.
