Leonteq, which is seeking to improve its financial performance, announced a cut in its committee line-up but also announced an "extended senior management team," helping it to take decisions faster. It announced a new CEO in February this year.

Leonteq, a structured products and insurance products firm, said yesterday that it is shrinking its executive committee from seven to five members, and changing its management setup.

The decision came after the Zurich-listed firm appointed a new chief executive, Christian Spieler (he took the role from 1 March). He succeeded Lukas Ruflin, one of its founders. 

Leonteq is on a drive to boost profitability. Late in December 2024, Fitch, the ratings agency, cut long-term default ratings on the business to “negative” from “stable,” citing a decline in the firm’s profitability. Fitch’s expectations of the firm achieving a sustainable operating return on equity approaching 10 per cent over Leonteq’s outlook horizon would be “increasingly challenging.”

Leonteq said it will “resize” its executive committee with immediate effect. It will include Christian Spieler, chief exective, Hans Widler, chief financial officer, Reto Quadroni, chief risk officer, Manish Patnaik, chief operating officer, and Jasmin Koelbl-Vogt, general counsel, it said in a statement. 

Leonteq also announced that in view of his upcoming retirement, the board of directors is preparing for a successor to Quadroni; it is already “well advanced in this process” and expects to announce a new CRO in the coming months.

Extended senior team
The firm said an “extended senior management team” will be created. It consists of Lorenzo Leccesi (new head of investment solutions) as well as Alexander van Gasselt and Karthik Eswar (co-heads of markets).

“We must adapt to a broader regulatory framework and seize growth opportunities,” Spieler said. “The ability to make decisions quickly while staying close to our clients and the market is therefore essential. With the new setup, we are well positioned to deliver on our commitment to state-of-the-art client- and market-driven solutions.”

Leccesi, who is the new investment solutions head, has been head of sales for Europe, and deputy head, investment solutions, since 2023. He is succeeding Alessandro Ricci, who will be leaving the firm.

Chief people officer Markus Schmid has decided to step down from his position and will leave the firm. Isabelle Hauser will be appointed as new head of human resources. She has had more than 17 years of experience in HR at Schroders and State Street, most recently as head of HR for Switzerland and Austria, Hauser joined Leonteq in 2024.

“The changes announced today, as part of a broader effort, will amplify Leonteq`s transformation into a lean, client-focused, technology-based investment product and distribution platform. We sincerely thank Alessandro Ricci and Markus Schmid for their dedication and valuable contributions to the firm over the past years,” Christopher Chambers, chairman of the board of directors at Leonteq, said.

In February, when reporting its 2024 results, Leonteq said net fee income rose in 2024 by 1 per cent year-on-year to SFr214.4 million ($237.4 million); its net trading result contracted to SFr21.5 million on the back of continued low market volatility, versus SFr36.6 million a year before. Group net profit fell to SFr5.8 million from SFr20.6 million.