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UBS
The bank does well in precisely those areas – Delta 1, swaps and financing and risk management – where its traditional strengths and consistent ambitions lie: in delivering risk-based securities financing and customised swap financing. These findings are reinforced by a handsome score for sales and marketing, where clients reassure UBS it charges sums they believe to be fair and puts the right value on the assets they hold. The only vulnerabilities, discernible in the detailed scores, lie in the client appetite for greater economies through netting and cross-product margining – and these are fields where managers always believe every investment bank can do more. The scoring of OTC clearing services, where UBS is a major force, is affected by the same considerations. Stock borrowing and lending, on the other hand, remain acknowledged strengths of the bank.“ Best stock borrow and lending team we deal with globally,” writes a client. It is a predictable strength, given that the bank has access to in-house inventory from its wealth management arm as well as an extensive global network of sources of supply. The detailed scores confirm that clients believe there is enough depth to protect them from unhelpful recalls, even if they are not so confident about the ability of UBS to secure hard-to-borrows. Unusually, UBS also beats the benchmark for capital introductions. This almost certainly reflects the degree of collaboration between the investment bank and the private bank, and the distribution power of UBS networks in the wider private banking and funds of funds and family office industries. One member of the capital introductions team is name-checked as“ one of the best CI guys around,” while his colleagues are described as“ top tier.” Inevitably, there is at least one manager who is disappointed.“ Quality of introductions is lacking,” he writes.“ Generally, only hear from them when we reach out.” But a fourth respondent says UBS has a“ top-notch team globally” that“ always provides us with timely information and introductions.” The same cannot be said of the consulting team. The scores for fixed income and foreign exchange are not much better, which is curious, given that prime services is a gateway into fixed income and foreign exchange platforms of formidable size and reputation. The operations score is equally puzzling for a bank with an in-house custody arm that clears and settles cash and securities in dozens of markets around the world on behalf of the private as well as the investment bank. But the assessment of client service is more worrying. Although one client has encountered nothing but“ great client and PB Services,” the average score suggests the client service model is not working. Staff turnover, an issue in 2017, is not mentioned this year. UBS will be even more disappointed by the outcome in technology. UBS Neo, the new investment banking platform designed to bring together research, prices, financing, execution and settlement capabilities across all asset classes, is noticed by some clients but clearly not all.“ Great portal, one of the best in the industry,” enthuses one respondent. A second agrees Neo is“ best in class.” A third contributor is more thoughtful.“ Neo online portal is very useful, with reports that are updated / generated live( vs. other PB portals that only has T + 1 reports shown on the portal),” he writes.
“ However, timing of some T + 1 reports can take a bit of time to generate( mid afternoon).” Unfairly, the bank earns insufficient reward for building the apps that allow clients to access Neo on the move.
39 %
By size
15 %
46 %
Weighted average scores
PROFILE OF RESPONDENTS
Large Medium Small
Weighted average scores by service area Service area
36 %
By location
17 %
2016 2017 2018 5.56 5.61 5.45
Weighted average score
Capital introductions 5.49 2.3 %
47 %
Americas Europe and Middle East Asia
+/- the global average
Client service 5.20-13.5 % Consulting 5.19-11.4 % Operations 5.00-16.1 % Technology 5.45-2.7 % Product development 5.13-6.0 % Risk management 5.63 1.1 % Asset safety 5.53-3.6 % Sales and marketing 6.13-0.1 % Trading and execution 5.55-5.2 % Delta 1, swaps and financing 5.68-0.7 % Stock borrowing and lending 5.56-6.8 % Foreign exchange prime brokerage 4.69-17.3 % Fixed income 4.85-16.0 % OTC clearing 4.97-15.1 % Listed derivatives 5.58-5.3 % Total 5.45-6.0 %
The Hedge Fund Annual 2018 globalcustodian. com 91