UBS' integration of its private bank in January led to the de facto demise of the bank’s women’s program – Unique. But this won't stop the bank's quest to keep the dialogue with the female rich open.
By Shruti Advani, Guest Contributor finews.asia
«Yes, the bank is changing but this initiative will continue to be a priority,» said Marina Lui, head of China at UBS wealth management, in an interview with finews.asia. «The way we market the initiative has changed and we no longer brand it Unique, but in truth it has more resources behind it now,» she added, referring to the local sponsorship.
Lui is adamant that the bank's dialogue with women must continue, whatever avatar it may take. Research undertaken by the largest Swiss bank shows why a more sensitive gender focus is crucial for a bank that recently was berated for its treatment of sexual harassment in the U.K. Seven out of 10 female clients are actively involved in their family business, putting to rest the cliche of the passive Asian woman. Moreover, more Chinese entrepreneurs are female than male.
Self-Made Female Billionaires
According to the «UBS and PwC Billionaires Report in 2017», the number of Asia’s female billionaires has grown 13 times from 2005 to 2016, representing 6 percent of the total Asian billionaire population. Compared to more developed economies like the U.S. where the number remained flat and Europe which saw a small decrease over the past two years, the findings in Asia are particularly pertinent.
What is perhaps most interesting to UBS – and arch rival Credit Suisse, which has positioned itself as the entrepreneurs’ bank of choice – is that 70 percent of Asia‘s female billionaires are self-made, compared to a global average of 26 percent, 17 percent in the U.S. and 7 percent in Europe.
150 Years of Experience
“We have a 150 years of experience in wealth management, but most of the early years were spent dealing with men so our approach was quite gender-specific,» Lui said. «But we have found that if we can put a female gender lens on a new product – talk about how sustainable it is for example – it is more successful.»
That explains the commercial imperative for continuing the program. Stripped as it may be of the glamour that accompanied it’s launch – endorsements by Gloria Steinem and Anna Wintour among others – there is a feeling among employees in Asia that Unique, although it certainly has been reorganized, is alive and well.
«There is no way that Unique could just be scrapped in Asia. We may have a man at the helm now, but UBS in Asia has been built by women like Kathy and Amy,» said one female employee, referring to Kathryn Shih, head of Asia Pacific and Amy Lo, chairwoman in the greater China region. «Sixty percent of the wealth management staff in Asia are female and the focus truly is on what is the dialogue we should have with female clients and prospects.»
Globally, 40 percent of UBS staff are female and occupy 23 percent of management roles.
A Strategic Approach
«Better serving female clients is a business priority at UBS global wealth management. Given the success of the Unique program, we have broadened it into a strategic segment approach across the global wealth management business,» insisted a spokesperson for the bank. While Unique was an independent vertical with allocated funding, gender-specific initiatives have now been housed in the global client strategy office. «What we are doing is not a marketing program, but a global business priority we are taking extremely seriously,» said Lui.
But how may these lofty ambitions be transformed into results across diverse regions? By following the tried-and-tested UBS formula of industrializing any initiative to the point where quality and output are homogenous.
«We are re-training our client advisers, we are changing the offering to include more sustainability, diversity and long term investment opportunities, as our research has found that these offerings are more attractive for female clients,» said Lui. The bank sounds committed to implementing what it refers to as a female or gender view to all relevant processes and has set targets for increasing the diversity of its workforce.
Not a Recruitment Tool
Does having a female-client focus serve as a recruitment tool for the bank? Not so, says a Hong Kong-based headhunter who has not «ever been asked by candidates» whether a bank services a specific gender well. Does it serve as a successful client acquisition strategy? «I would think of it in terms of a client retention strategy rather than as an acquisition strategy,» a senior member of staff at a U.S. private bank said.
Results rather than rhetoric make clients gravitate towards a particular platform. An exchange traded gender equality fund launched by UBS in January has had success in raising managed assets and is acknowledged as one of the most innovative in sustainable investments in the region. We may well be on the cusp of change – financial institutions such as UBS have acknowledged the power of women when it comes to their share of the wallet. If change was prompted for strategic rather than altruistic reasons, so be it.
