SYZ & Co, the Swiss banking group, has boosted its stake in the holding company of Italy’s Banca Albertini Syz & C to 64.3 per cent from 50 per cent, the firm announced today.

The increased stake was achieved by Syz & Co taking over the shares of two of Albertini’s Italian shareholders, Giampaolo Gamba and Ernesto Marelli, who are staying on as directors and continuing their present activity within the bank. Alberto Albertini retains the remaining 35.7 per cent of the capital, according to a statement from Syz & Co.

Based in Milan and with offices in Rome, Bologna and Reggio Emilia, the Italian private bank Banca Albertini Syz & C was established as a result of the partnership initiated in January 2002 between SYZ & CO and the Milanese group Albertini. With assets under management of SFr3.3 billion, Banca Albertini Syz & C specialises in high-end private banking for an Italian clientele.

“It [higher stake] is a token of trust in our country and our business, in an environment that is certainly difficult for Italy, and a recognition of our cooperation, which has been operating successfully for more than 10 years thanks to a reciprocal commitment and trust, and which is characterized by independence and professionalism in private banking and asset management," Alberto Albertini, managing director of the Bank and also a shareholder of the SYZ & CO Group, said.

 "This operation enables us to speed up integration of the Group’s Swiss and Italian expertise in a market with a great growth potential for highly specialised and professional entities like ours," explained Alfredo Piacentini, co-founder of SYZ & Co.