Citigroup Private Bank has appointed Michael Demirel as the new head of its Private Bank in Switzerland and general manager for Citibank (Sw...

Citigroup Private Bank has appointed Michael Demirel as the new head of its Private Bank in Switzerland and general manager for Citibank (Switzerland), effective immediately. Mr Demirel will be based in Geneva, he will report to Marianne Hay, chief executive officer of Citigroup's Global Wealth Management business in Europe. He will report locally to the board of directors of Citibank (Switzerland) and will work closely with Per Etholm, Citigroup’s country officer for Switzerland. Mr Demirel joined Citigroup Private Bank Europe in January this year as a strategic consultant. Previously with UBS in New York, he was executive director, UBS Wealth Management US and was responsible for new business development, M&A activity and devising an ultra high net worth focus. “Currently, over 90 per cent of our business booked in Switzerland is for international clients, and we remain committed to that segment. However, we also believe we can broaden our onshore coverage noticeably, given our unique strengths. We'll target clients for whom the global capabilities of Citigroup add value,” a Citigroup spokeswoman told WealthBriefing. The CPB Europe is currently focused on expanding its onshore offering to clients across the region with a particular emphasis on serving entrepreneurial wealth, real estate investors and private equity professionals. The Swiss bank has recently reported a pre-tax profit of SFr7.7 million in the first half, compared with a loss of SFr21.8 million in the same period last year. Client assets under management were SFr27.4 billion in December 2005 when the bank had 517 employees.