In this issue

Another year brings more winners

After 18 months of virtual showrooms and Zoom meetings, it was a true pleasure to host the Private Banker International London Awards 2021.

Private banking is very much a personal business and it is good to embrace that once again in the form of these awards, a prestigious affair that highlights and rewards the firms that go above and beyond for their clients.

And in the last year or so, above and beyond is right. With a global pandemic halting close to every industry, demands and needs shifted overnight. Private banking has had to step up and meet them.

However, the world is recovering, as it has before, and there are new hurdles.

Engagement is changing. Wealthy clients are no longer willing to dress up and travel to a head office to talk shop, not when Zoom is on their smartphone and teams on their laptop. Meeting clients where they want has never been so important, but instead of a restaurant or office, it’s a piece of software.

This is an opportunity to not be missed however, as through the medium of online chat, private bankers and wealth managers and being invited into the home. Some, perhaps, for the very first time. The peeks into the inner sanctum could be the key to keeping relationships fresh and relevant when clients are looking for as many relationships as possible.

Any talk on finance has to mention ESG now and this is no exception. ESG could be the greatest opportunity the sector has ever had, and not exploited, it could also be the last one.

A trendy way to invest now, the iron fist of standardisation is yet to come down upon the exciting sector, but this is surely not far away. Action must be taken and there is no reason the private banking sector cannot lead the way. As long as there’s a healthy return on it.

Patrick Brusnahan, editor

Full list of award winners:
 
Outstanding Private Bank – UK – Domestic Clients
Hampden & Co

Outstanding Private Bank – UK – International Clients
Standard Chartered

Outstanding Private Bank – UK Crown dependencies
Barclays

Outstanding Private Bank – Western European region
Société Générale

Outstanding Private Banking Client Engagement
Société Générale

Outstanding Wealth Management Technology Provider – middle office (vendor)
UBS Partner

Outstanding Wealth Management Technology Provider – back office (vendor)
Avaloq

Outstanding Digital Solutions Provider (vendor)
Appway

Outstanding Private Bank for Next Generation Proposition
BNP Paribas

Outstanding Private Bank for UHNW Clients
HSBC

Outstanding Private Bank for Philanthropy Proposition
BNP Paribas

Outstanding Private Bank for Sustainable and Ethical Investment
Santander

Outstanding Private Bank for Diversity and Inclusion
CA Indosuez Wealth Management