Spain’s potential catches the eye of Swiss bank

Pictet opens office in Madrid to target clients of a tough but less explored market. Yuri Bender reports. Spain, a market overlooked by many investment houses, has been highlighted as a key target for the Pictet Funds division of the Swiss private bank. Pictet Funds has just opened an office in Madrid, under country manager Gonzalo Rengifo, who clinched a distribution deal with Allfunds Bank. “This threw a very strong message to the market, that we are a private partnership without any pressure from shareholders,” said Laurent Ramsey, chief marketing officer for Pictet Funds and head of European distribution. “There is no profitability squeeze, so when everyone else is going out, we are just coming in. Spain is an extremely tough market to cover for foreign banks.” The agreement gives Pictet access to a whole network of sub-distributors, including the private banking arm of Allfunds owner, BSCH. The funds can also be used as underlying investments for capital protected products. Spanish rival BBVA is also being targeted by Pictet. “The Spanish market is the most concentrated in Europe,” said Mr Ramsey. “Those two banks make up 85 per cent of the market between them. It is opening up at a slower place than other countries. Traditionally, Spanish clients invested in the fixed income side, which most banks manage in-house. They don’t look externally until they develop the second stage, which is equity products.”