UBS is recognised in the FX industry as a leading liquidity provider with a presence in all key trading centres around the globe. It is also the largest global wealth manager, with an unrivalled global footprint when it comes to accessing private clients. This has given UBS a unique opportunity that it has successfully capitalised on.
The Swiss bank’s size means that it enjoys economies of scale across the entire front-to-back process. Its investment in technology has focused on automating the creation of pre-trade regulatory documentation and suitability checks to algorithms monitoring existing positions, identifying clients who may benefit from new positions and providing automated best-in-class after-sales solutions.
The bank’s clients are increasingly treating FX as an asset class that can bring diversification to their portfolios. During 2022, UBS made progress in addressing this demand and shows a high roll-over ratio for existing positions, suggesting that clients are satisfied with the strategy.
During 2022, UBS grew FX volumes generated by wealth management clients globally by 7%, to $1.16 trillion. This was predominantly driven by the derivatives business, where structured forwards grew by an impressive 37% and vanilla and exotic options by 9%.
In addition, a total of 3,050 clients traded FX structured forwards who had not done so the previous year.
“We are proud to have been recognised by Euromoney for our market leading FX capabilities to our wealth management clients,” says Adrian Boehler, global head of FX distribution at UBS. “Clients are at the heart of everything we do at UBS, and being the leading FX bank for wealth management is a tremendous accolade given that wealth management is not only a big part of what we do but is also a big part of who we are at UBS.
"Our continued investment in technology means we are providing an ever-more personalised service while making it more convenient for our WM clients to transact with us.”