Coutts Private Office, the UHNW arm of the private bank Coutts & Co, has bolstered its team with the hire of Maeve Colley-Russell from Barclays Wealth as a senior client partner.

In her new, London-based role, Colley-Russell will report to Duncan MacIntyre, the global head of the unit. She is charged with looking after the financial affairs of UHNW clients, and specialises in both UK resident domiciled and non-domiciled clients. Coutts classifies UHNW clients as those whose assets typically exceed £30 million (around $47.4 billion), or who have more than £10 million in investable assets.

At Barclays Wealth, where she spent five years, Colley-Russell held a similar role, serving as a director responsible for UHNW clients. Her prior career also includes positions at Credit Suisse Private Banking and Union Bancaire Privée.

MacIntyre said the hire of someone with a long track record in client relationships would be instrumental in the continued expansion of the 29-strong UHNW division. Last year, Coutts made senior hires for the business from both Credit Suisse and HSBC Private Bank, and said at the time it would continue to strengthen it.

The UK private bank set up its private office operation in 2005 to cater specifically for UHNW individuals, with an emphasis on dealing with the specific needs of this client segment, such as complicated investment, wealth structuring and financial planning requirements; it has since gone on to accumulate some £3.7 billion in assets.