Switzerland's UBS is gearing up for growth in the Italian wealth management market via an acquisition.

UBS is to acquire an Italian wealth management business from Banco Santander, which includes €2.7 billion ($2.9 billion) in assets under management, for an undisclosed sum.

Santander Private Banking Italia's offering includes financial advice and investment solutions for high net worth individuals and family groups. The deal, details of which were not disclosed, involves all of SPB Italia's private bankers and branch support staff across its offices in Milan, Varese, Brescia, Roma Napoli and Salerno.

The Milan-based Santander business will be integrated into UBS Italia and aims to further boost UBS Wealth Management's Italian presence, which already stands at a 4 per cent share of the Italian wealth management market, according to Magstat data. The acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter of 2016, subject to regulatory approval.

“SPB Italia has a distinguished positioning in our country as a provider of world-class private banking services. This transaction is a natural fit with our current wealth management offering in Italy in terms of both business and culture,” said Fabio Innocenzi, chief executive of UBS Italia.

“It also represents a perfect opportunity to grow UBS's business and to further expand our market share in Italy. SPB Italia's clients and private bankers will gain access to one of the world’s leading wealth management platforms with an excellent reputation in the marketplace. UBS's clients will benefit from a wider range of banking products and financial solutions.”

UBS is the second Swiss banking group within a week to make moves within the Italian wealth management space. Julius Baer has also announced plans to acquire a majority stake in Kairos, an Italian wealth and asset manager, before listing a minority of the company on the Italian Stock Exchange.

(To view UBS's latest set of financial results, click here.)