Reyl Private Office, a subsidiary of the Geneva-based Reyl private banking group, has hired Françoise Adam, an art market specialist, to develop a range of services related to art and art collection management.

The new art services are intended to both complement the firm’s “lifestyle” concierge services offering and its core activities such as estate and tax planning, Reyl said in a statement. As such, clients will be able to gain assistance in matters such as buying and selling strategies for art assets.

Art collection is an increasingly mainstream asset class within wealth management, driven by the fact that, post-crisis, clients are more and more drawn to tangible assets with an inherent rarity value.

“In crisis times, art strengthened as an investment on its own and became an important alternative to classical solutions,” Adam said in a statement.

“Timeless, high-quality pieces ranging from major Impressionist and Modern works of art to precious stones appear to be very safe investments. At Reyl Private Office we want to treat art like any other asset: rigorously and professionally.”

Before joining Reyl, Adam worked for seven years for Christie’s in Paris and Geneva, developing the auction house’s client base and organising high-profile auctions.