The new UBS innovation centre is located in the stunning Command House a place originally built as a dwelling for members of royalty, a president and many powerful military men. These days Command House stands not as a residence but as a place of learning, the UBS Business University.

Known as EVOLVE the UBS Centre for Design Thinking and Innovation in Singapore, is the first of its kind for UBS in Asia Pacific the hub will be focused on creating new innovative and user-centric products to meet the evolving needs of wealth management clients.

The launch ceremony was officiated by Juerg Zeltner, President of UBS Wealth Management and Guest-of-Honour Jacqueline Loh, Deputy Managing Director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, marked a milestone in UBS's digital journey.

According to the UBS PwC 2015 Billionaire Report, Asia is set to become the centre of billionaire growth, with billionaire wealth in Asia set to surpass that of the US in the next five to ten years.

The Innovation Centre is designed to support this growth by creating the next generation of industry and digital skill competencies, innovating and developing future business capabilities for the wealth management industry. It will also function as a centre for the sharing of best practices and ideas among academia, innovation partners, industry experts and clients.

Juerg Zeltner, President of UBS Wealth Management said, “We are launching our new Innovation Centre in one of the most tech-savvy cities in the world, Singapore, at the heart of our fast-growing wealth management franchise in Asia Pacific.

Edmund Koh, Country Head of UBS Singapore and Head of Wealth Management Southeast Asia and APAC Hub said, "It makes me proud that we are launching UBS's first Innovation Centre in Asia Pacific here in Singapore. It is a reflection of Singapore's position as a premier wealth management hub and our belief in the creative and innovative spirit that thrives here. We are honoured to have the support of the Monetary Authority of Singapore in the launch of this Innovation Centre."

As the next step in its digital journey in Asia Pacific, UBS is also rolling out its new digital service the UBS-Wealth Management app in response to increasing client preferences for digital solutions in Asia. Clients will be able to receive timely portfolio health checks, UBS Impact articles that are customized to their portfolios and benchmark their portfolio performance with the UBS CIO House View all at the touch of a button.

Ketan Samani, Chief Digital Officer APAC said, "We believe Asian clients are more digital than in other parts of the world, with almost 40% preferring digital contact over direct contact.”

The new Innovation Centre in Asia Pacific complements the first wealth management innovation lab established by UBS in Zurich last year and the recently opened innovation lab in Level39 in London to research bank-wide topics. These centres form the foundation of an innovation ecosystem that enables a strategic orchestration of new technologies and innovation.