Beat Wittmann, who was chief executive of the investment products division of Clariden Leu and till last November of Julius Baer, has launched a global independent asset manager, Dynapartners, according to Swiss paper Le Temps. It will have offices in Geneva, Zurich and London, and will target private clients with an institutional profile as well as institutional clients. 

The founders include chief operating officer Daniel Kornmann and portfolio manager Martin Hueppi, who also previously worked for Julius Baer. Others are Giovanni Miccoli from Goldman Sachs, Anat Bar-Gera from UBS and Gerhard Niggli from Pestalozzi Lachenal & Patry. These last two are on the board.

Mr Wittmann said: “The timing could not be better to benefit from recent changes in the asset management business, a sector currently at a cyclical low point looking certain to grow.”

Dynapartners intends to grow both organically and by acquisition, planning to have between  SFr5 billion ($4.6 billion) and SFr7 billion under management and 25 employees within five years. Thereafter, exit might be by a trade sale or an IPO.

The firm launches on 1 July.