UBS is taking a higher profile for its ultra high net worth (UHNW) private banking business in Asia with the launch of its Wealth-X and UBS World Ultra Wealth Report 2014.
While UBS used to be the go-to-bank for UHNW clients in the region, it faced intense competition in recent years from other global as well as regional private banks.
With the release of its wealth report done with Wealth-X, a leading intelligence and prospecting firm specializing in UHNW clients, UBS is sending a signal that it is doing away with its low-key approach to promoting it business among Asian clients and casting itself as an expert in private banking and wealth management. This approach is similar to that of Cap Gemini and Julius Baer which also publish their respective versions of the world wealth report.
Amy Lo, head of Greater China, UBS wealth management country head and UBS Hong Kong managing director, however brushed off the competitors saying: “If you look at the numbers, obviously, this is a very lucrative business for all the players in the market. But I would say size and scale do matter as well as the dedication and commitment to industry. That makes a lot of difference.”
“For UBS, we have the size and scale because just in Hong Kong, we have almost 1,000 bankers working in the wealth management industry. With that size and scale, it allows us to further segment the business to ultra high and also high (net worth),” Lo emphasizes.
The Wealth-X and UBS World Ultra Wealth Report 2014 backs Lo’s claims as Hong Kong’s UHNW population grew almost 4x faster in 2014 compared to the previous year with the addition of 155 UHNW individuals, bringing the country’s total UHNW population to a record 3,335.
The combined net worth of Hong Kong’s UHNW individuals – defined as those with US$30 million and above in net assets – rose by 12.3% to US$595 billion over the past year. The average net worth of the country’s UHNW individuals increased by 7% to US$178 million – almost US$40 million more than the global average.
In terms of UHNW population, Hong Kong ranks fourth among Asian countries and 13th globally, according to the Wealth-X and UBS 2014 study. Asia is home to 46,635 UHNW individuals with a total net worth of almost US$7 trillion.
Other key findings from the Wealth-X and UBS World Ultra Wealth Report 2014 are:
* There are more than 460 UHNW individuals per million Hong Kong residents, a ratio that is 20x higher than the global average.
* A significant portion of UHNW wealth in Hong Kong is multi-generational. Almost half of the country’s UHNW individuals have partly inherited their wealth.
* Nearly 10% of Hong Kong’s UHNW individuals made their fortunes through real estate, a higher proportion than in any country featured in the report.
* Female UHNW individuals make up almost one quarter of Hong Kong’s UHNW population, the largest share among all of the countries featured in the report.
The Wealth-X and UBS World Ultra Wealth Report 2014 shows that 12,040 UHNW individuals were newly-minted this year, pushing the global UHNW population to a record 211,275, a 6% increase from 2013.
The total wealth of the world’s UHNW population increased by 7% to US$30 trillion in 2014.
The report – which looks at the global UHNW population from July 2013 to June 2014 – examines this wealth segment by geographical location, gender and sources of wealth.
It uses the primary business address as the determinant of an UHNW individual’s location.
Wealth-X CEO Mykolas Rambus said: “The Wealth-X and UBS World Ultra Wealth Report 2014 underscores Wealth-X’s commitment to conducting groundbreaking research on the world’s ultra high net worth population. Expert commentary from UBS complements Wealth-X’s global intelligence on the world’s UHNW population, producing a report that demonstrates a true collaboration between the global leader in wealth management and the world’s leading UHNW intelligence provider.”
