Help, I m Rich!: Your Compass to a Value-Adding Private Banking Experience

Epilogue

A crisis of confidence in the financial industry is damaging, not just for those working in the industry, but also for people who should rely on it. And this is precisely what has happened in the aftermath of the financial crisis. Levels of skepticism among the public soared to an all-time high while the morale among the professionals dipped to an all-time low. In such a setting it is very difficult to imagine how private banks are able to offer a level of service that really meets the needs of their clients.

Private banking clients don’t need products or standard off-the-shelf solutions. They need a personal, empathic approach by professionals who can help to ease their specific concerns. It is the diagnosis prior to the prescription of the “medicines” that counts the most: The more accurate the diagnosis, the higher the likelihood that the proposed solution is adequate to ease the concerns.

Accepting to be diagnosed or to take the prescribed medicines requires trust and confidence in the professionalism of the analyst. Once that trust is lacking, people will remain untreated and thus continue their lives with a high level of discomfort. Being deprived of help when it is needed is sad. But it becomes intolerable when the deprivation is not caused by the absence of help but instead by the lack of confidence in those who have the ability and skills to help.

For that reason, it is essential that the trust and confidence in the industry be restored. Regulators and banks ...