In 1819, when Mirabaud Bank was established primarily as a private wealth management institution, the Geneva-based bank was at the heart of the world's financial center simply by maintaining a hub in Switzerland. Flash forward 200 years later, and the financial world has changed. Today, banking is very much an international industry. While Mirabaud has embraced that shift, establishing offices in Montreal, Dubai, and Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates, London, Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, and Seville in Spain, Milan, Paris, Montevideo, Uruguay, and Sao Paulo, the bank is not done growing its global presence, particularly in the burgeoning wealth management hub of Latin America.

According to the CEO of the bank's Brazilian operations, Urbano de Moraes, Mirabaud plans to triple the value of assets it manages in Brazil over the next two years, part of an expansion into Latin America that began in 2019.

Betting Big on the Biggest Economy in Latin America

After opening its Sao Paulo office in 2019, Mirabaud Bank acquired local licensing and put Moraes in place in 2023. Moraes is the former head of Indosuez Wealth SA and also held executive positions at Credit Agricole SA and Credit Lyonnais SACA.

His office currently works with 70 Brazilian-based clients, managing assets worth $197 million (the equivalent of 1 billion reais).

While these totals are high for a very young office, Moraes has said of his region, "We have a lot of room to grow organically." Indeed, Brazil's entire wealth management industry is expanding swiftly as many new players join the game, reflected by an 8.3% increase in privately managed funds in the country in the first half of 2023 alone to reach a total of 460.4 billion reais.

Mirabaud is aware of the rapid rise in local opportunities, and, as a reflection of the importance it's placing on the region, managing partner Nicolas Mirabaud recently traveled to the country, taking time to meet with existing and prospective clients both in Sao Paulo, where the current office is located and in Rio de Janeiro.

Responsibly Structured Growth

Rather than simply speaking about tripling the value of managed Brazilian assets in two years, the Mirabaud team is already taking steps to make this goal a reality. In 2023, the bank raised 100 million reais to establish a fixed-income fund in the country, and, according to Eric Hatisuka—Mirabaud's Brazilian chief investment officer—the team is now poised to create a second fund, which will focus on private credit.

For now, these are the only concrete expansion strategies announced by Mirabaud's 13-person Brazilian team, and solidifying growth plans may take some time as the group closely monitors the ongoing debates regarding wealth tax currently taking place in the Brazilian congress.

However, while maintaining something of a watch-and-wait policy, Moraes is also dreaming big for the future of Mirabaud in the country.

"Brazil is full of opportunities, in construction, agribusiness, technology startups, and services. In a market of this size, you create space for companies to grow and with that attract big players to the country."

See more recent Mirabaud news: https://www.wealthbriefing.com/html/article.php/Mirabaud-Adds-Senior-Banking%2C-Finance-Figures-To-Swiss-Entity%27s-Board