The departure of a senior figure after six years at the bank has prompted Julius Baer to replace the role with two co-heads.

Julius Baer announced late last week that it is changing the setup of its Swiss market management. Marc Blunier and Alain Krüger (both pictured below) will be taking over responsibility as co-heads on 1 January 2026. 

After six years at Julius Baer, the market head of Switzerland, Patrick Prinz, has decided to leave Julius Baer at the end of 2025 for personal reasons, the Zurich-listed group said in a statement.

Marc Blunier

Alain Krüger

Additionally, Krüger will take over local leadership of the bank in Geneva. Sacha Bodenehr, who has held this post since January 2023, will become head of business management in Geneva. He will also act as Krüger’s deputy locally.

In their joint roles, Blunier and Krüger will be responsible for the domestic teams handling local businesses across 11 locations in German- and French-speaking Switzerland, as well as the implementation of Julius Baer’s strategic market initiatives.

With more than 30 years’ experience in Swiss and international financial institutions, Blunier has been working for Julius Baer for six years. Blunier, who is head of offering management and development, will remain in this position until the end of the year, overseeing the bank’s global product portfolio and offering services within the newly-created Global Products & Solutions unit. Prior to Julius Baer, Blunier served in management roles in the investment area of UBS Switzerland over a 10-year period.

Krüger has more than 25 years’ experience in client business, serving ultra-high net worth individuals and family offices. Based in Geneva since 2013, Krüger was head of UHNW and family office services for French-speaking Switzerland at UBS from 2013 to 2020. Prior to joining Julius Baer, he was responsible for the coverage of UHNW and family office clients at Goldman Sachs in Switzerland.

“With Alain Krüger, we have gained a distinguished banking professional as co-head of our home market, and, at the same time, have been able to promote Marc Blunier, a proven leader from our own ranks,” Thomas Frauenlob, co-head of the Western Markets and Switzerland region at Julius Baer, said: “This joint leadership brings together complementary strengths – both in terms of expertise, and local connections and experience.”

“Our thanks go to Patrick Prinz, who has held various roles at Julius Baer since 2019, and, most recently, as head of Switzerland, for his significant contribution to strengthening our position within our domestic market,” Frauenlob said.