The merger and acquisition carousel in Europe's private banking sector continues to spin, with the announcement of a fresh agreement in Luxembourg.

Switzerland-based Banque J Safra Sarasin has agreed to acquire Bank Leumi’s Luxembourg’s private banking business for an undisclosed sum. The agreement covers qualifying clients and their relationship management teams serving ultra high net worth and HNW clients.

Banque J Safra Sarasin (Luxembourg), which has been present in the Luxembourg market for 30 years, said the acquisition was a “natural extension” of its private banking business.

The agreement is one of a number of acquisitions in the European private banking space in recent months, as rising costs and a need to bolster margins has encouraged industry consolidation. Royal Bank of Canada, for example, recently agreed to sell its Swiss private bank to Syz, the Geneva-headquartered wealth management firm. Earlier this year, Fosun International, part of the Asia-based Fosun Group, reported a robust set of results in September. It also stated it intends to buy Belgium-domiciled BHF Kleinwort Benson Group, a bank with a strong German heritage and business footprint; that deal added to an agreement Fosun struck to buy Hauck & Aufhäuser, the venerable German private banking and financial firm.

The acquisition of the Luxembourg-based business is expected to be completed in the first three months of 2016, Banque J Safra Sarasin said in a statement today.

Bank Leumi has operated in Luxembourg since 1994 and is part of the Israel-headquartered Leumi Group. The bank had $1.25 billion of assets under management at the end of last year. This compares with the SFr147 billion (around $145 billion) of assets under management at Banque J Safra Sarasin.

“This acquisition underlines our position as a consolidator in the European private banking market. Our capital strength and family ownership provides great flexibility to do such transactions. Bank Leumi’s Luxembourg business sits ideally within our strategic focus, providing tailor made solutions to clients,” Jacob J Safra, vice chairman of his eponymous bank, said in a statement.

In April last year, Bank J Safra Sarasin acquired the Swiss private banking business of Morgan Stanley, as the US firm moved to pull out of markets in which it felt it was unable to achieve sufficient scale to justify the cost.