Kleinwort Benson, the UK private bank, is to shutter its Leeds office as it moves to streamline its operations, according to various media outlets, leaving it now with no office in the north of England following the closure of its Manchester office in May.

Jonathan Marsden, who was recruited from Chase de Vere Private Clients in the autumn of 2007 to help launch Kleinwort’s Leeds office, has departed the firm, a Citywire report said. Details of his next role have yet to emerge.

The closure of the Leeds office, which had been in operation for four years, takes Kleinwort’s network down to six branches: London, Edinburgh, Cambridge, Guernsey, Jersey and Newbury. It is understood that the decision to close the Leeds office was taken in order to redeploy resources to other parts of the business.

Kleinwort declined to comment when contacted by WealthBriefing.

Kleinwort’s pullout from Leeds, if the reports are correct, is in contrast to expansionary moves being made in the city by UBS. The Swiss banking giant recently opened a new Leeds office in a bid to target “old money” in Yorkshire, as well as the region’s entrepreneurs.

In other recent developments at Kleinwort, earlier this month WealthBriefing exclusively revealed that the private bank is bringing in a new head of strategic wealth planning from Swiss rival Lombard Odier. Marianne Kafena will start at Kleinwort in November this year in the newly-created role, reporting to Guy McGlashan, head of wealth management. At Lombard she was a senior wealth planner involved in providing legal support to private bankers.