UBS's London client advisors are leaving amidst possible pay grumbles
UBS has lost numerous figures from its London wealth management business in the past nine months. Disgruntled insiders say there are gripes about high staff churn and pay.
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The departures include Mark Goddard, the former head of the UK high net worth business, who left for a bigger role as CEO of Lombard Odier last October. James WhyBrow, the UK desk head for European wealth management, left for Barclays in February. Kalliopi Koufopoulou, joined from Barclays as a director in January 2024 but is understood to have left again of her own volition in January 2025.
UBS has around 200 client advisors in its London wealth management business, so the departure of three people simply be par for the course. However, insiders say the recent exits also follow the departure of a team run by Frank Casie last year, which included top client advisor, Shiv Gossain, who left to found his own wealth management firm in June. Casie himself is thought to have been subsequently let go.
Following Goddard's exits, the UK high net worth business is being run by Chris Oliver, who took over in October and who seems happy, having been at UBS for nearly fifteen years. Insiders suggest that Oliver is strengthening the business and that the hope is that he will address grumbling about staff turnover and pay.
"New joiners are being paid a lot more than existing people and we have been severely under-appreciated in terms of bonuses," complains one client advisor at the Swiss bank.
UBS declined to comment. The grumbles come despite the fact that UBS's 2024 annual report, released today, shows bonuses for senior bankers rising 27% to $1.4m.
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