Julius Bär ignites savings package: CHF 130 million in the rescue plan!

Julius Bär ignites savings package: CHF 130 million in the rescue plan!

Österreich - The Swiss private bank Julius Bär faces a financial realignment. The reason for this step are the significant effects of the bankruptcy of the Austrian real estate group Signa. After the bank had a depreciation of CHF 606 million to Signa in 2023, the increase in the austerity course now follows by a further CHF 130 million, which are to be saved by 2028, such as Vol.at reported.

These recent savings are part of a more comprehensive savings package that should already include savings of CHF 110 million by the end of 2025. Originally, the goal of this program was set to CHF 110 million, but a strives for a surplus of CHF 20 million. The estimated implementation costs for the new savings package amount to about half of the savings.

financial goals and challenges

The new target brands of Julius Bär by 2028 include a net new allowance of 4–5 % annually, a cost income ratio of less than 67 % and a return on core capital (Rocet1) of at least 30 %, which remains unchanged. In the course of this financial restructuring, a share buyback program will also be dispensed with until sufficient clarity from the Finma financial market supervision is available on the current Situation of the bank.

In addition, the bank is still the subject of an ongoing examination of FINMA regarding its loans to Signa and the associated losses. This supervision is crucial to counteract grievances in the borrowing and to ensure the security of the assets, as the bafin clarifies. The supervision aims to ensure the proper implementation of the banking transactions and prevent disadvantages for the overall economy.

Change of management and restructuring

A central point in the realignment of Julius Bär is the change in the management structure. Stefan Bollinger competed in January 2025 as the new CEO of the bank, while Noel Quinn took over the position of the Board of Directors in April 2025 after Romeo Lacher resigned. Philipp Rickenbacher had already positioned his position in 2024 after the significant credit cases.

The combination of these factors shows how serious the bank's financial and structural challenges are, which must now be seen in a new light. While Julius Bär takes the main steps to restore its financial stability, the industry landscape remains tense due to the continued effects of the signa bankruptcy and the ongoing regulatory investigations.