The chief executive of Swiss private bank J. Safra Sarasin stated that the firm’s acquisition of Denmark’s Saxo Bank, which operates a digital trading and investment platform, reflects the growing need for wealth managers to increase investment in technology as artificial intelligence may reshape the industry landscape.
On Monday, Safra Group completed the acquisition of a 70% stake in Saxo Bank in a deal valued at approximately €1.1 billion (around $1.3 billion).
Daniel Belfer, CEO of J. Safra Sarasin, said, “Saxo Bank’s core strength lies in its technological infrastructure—its ability to adapt flexibly to market changes and quickly align with client needs.”
In February, wealth management firms saw their share prices drop significantly as investors worried that new AI tools could reduce demand for financial advice, potentially undermining their business models.
Last week, AI lab Anthropic introduced new ways for businesses to use its plugins, including features related to wealth management such as portfolio analysis. Prior to that, startup Altruist had already launched AI-based tax planning capabilities.
Christian Edelmann, a banking expert at consultancy Oliver Wyman Forum, suggested that the AI transformation may shift banks’ return-on-investment considerations toward investing in cutting-edge technology rather than following the traditional model of acquiring wealth management firms to expand their customer base.
Belfer noted that J. Safra Sarasin continues to consider traditional acquisitions, but technology was the central factor in the Saxo Bank deal.
“AI will be everywhere,” he added. “Human service will still exist, but banks will be able to offer clients more detailed insights into their accounts.”
Saxo Bank announced on Monday that, following the merger, Belfer will also serve as CEO of Saxo Bank, replacing Kim Fournais, who will step down as CEO and become chairman of the Danish bank’s board.
Edelmann from Oliver Wyman Forum pointed out that generative AI can already enable hyper-personalized services, reducing the cost of serving client segments that were previously uneconomical while improving the efficiency of advisors in the high-net-worth segment.
“We are moving toward automated workflows with human oversight,” he said. “In three years, what professionals do at work will be completely different from today.”
Last week, U.S. payments company Block announced it would cut nearly half of its workforce as part of a business restructuring to fully integrate AI technology.
Major European banks have been expanding their wealth management operations to increase fee-based income. This month, NatWest Group announced a £2.7 billion acquisition of Evelyn Partners.