Rothschild taps Swiss banker to lead new wealth management office in Dubai

The global firm, managing assets of more than $106bn, has obtained a category 4 licence from the DFSA

Rothchild & Co will operate under a Dubai Financial Services Authority category 4 licence in DIFC. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Rothschild & Co, the global wealth and asset management firm, is expanding its wealth management business in Dubai with a new office, amid a significant rise in the number of affluent people choosing to live in the emirate and the wider region.

With wealth and asset management assets totalling more than €100 billion ($105.8 billion), the company serves its clients from offices in various countries including France, the UK, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Israel, Spain and Luxembourg.

Operating under a Dubai Financial Services Authority category 4 licence in the Dubai International Financial Centre, the new office will cater to ultra-high-net-worth families, entrepreneurs, charities and foundations, said the financial services firm, specialising in investment banking, wealth and asset management.

Headed by senior banker Sascha Benz, who relocated from Switzerland, the Dubai office will boost access to advisers in the UAE while benefiting from support by the Geneva-based Middle East team.

“We are excited to be able to strengthen our presence in the Middle East with our new office in Dubai. With … existing broad network of qualified clients among local investors, business owners and wealthy local and international families, we are confident of growing a strong wealth management client base in the region,” said Laurent Gagnebin, chief executive of Rothschild & Co’s wealth management business in Switzerland.

Creating a presence in the UAE is a strategic move for Rothschild & Co’s wealth management growth strategy to invest in markets where it has an established network and reputation, the company said.

The move reflects the UAE's rising appeal as a global financial centre, driven by its strategic location, business-friendly policies and strong regulatory framework.

The Emirates’ measures to attract foreign investment, combined with its position as a gateway to the broader Middle East, Africa and South Asia regions, make it attractive for global financial firms.

On Monday, BlackRock, the world's biggest asset manager, announced it has been granted a commercial licence to operate in Abu Dhabi.

In September, Stonepeak, a US-based alternative investment company with $71.2 billion of assets under management, received regulatory approval to set up a base in the Abu Dhabi Global Market to arrange and advise on investment opportunities in the UAE, the Arab world's second-largest economy.

Also in September, the ADGM welcomed its first trillion-dollar asset managers: PGIM, the global asset management business of the New York Stock Exchange-listed Prudential Financial, and Chicago investment firm Nuveen, with both aiming to expand their operations and client bases in the Middle East.

Rothchild & Co’s global advisory business is one of the leading independent financial advisory firms in the Middle East, where it has been providing expert merger and acquisition, debt advice and restructuring, and equity advice to various clients for nearly 20 years.

“The expansion will enable us to directly and strategically provide holistic advice to families and entrepreneurs on their long term journey,” said Saeed Al Awar, partner and head of Middle East at Rothschild & Co.