The asset management business of Swiss private bank Lombard Odier has appointed commercial leadership for German speaking Switzerland.

Lombard Odier Investment Managers has hired Thomas Breitenmoser as head of sales in Zurich, a newly-created role.

Breitenmoser will be responsible for driving Lombard Odier IM’s presence in German speaking Switzerland. Reporting to Carolina Minio-Paluello, global head of sales, he will oversee the sales team across institutional, wholesale and third party distribution channels.

He joins from Zürcher Kantonalbank. There, he served as head of asset management sales following the integration of Swisscanto Asset Management, where he had led institutional distribution. He previously spent 10 years at JP Morgan Asset Management.

“Switzerland is a mature and sophisticated market and it is important we continue to understand the needs of investors and respond with a serious proposition,” said Minio-Paluello. 

“Thomas’s appointment demonstrates Lombard Odier IM's commitment to German speaking Switzerland, and further development of our business.”

Lombard Odier IM’s Geneva-headquartered business managed $50 billion on behalf of clients at the end of December 2015. The bank as a whole recently reported that its consolidated net profit rose 20 per cent to SFr144 million ($144 million) in 2015 as client assets rose from SFr215 billion to SFr224 billion.