Singapore, 17 November – UBS is celebrating 50 successful years in Singapore with the official opening of its largest Asia Pacific office at 9 Penang Road. In the launch ceremony officiated by Axel A. Weber, Chairman of the Board of Directors UBS Group AG and Ralph Hamers, UBS Group CEO, the bank marked the occasion with clients, employees, and community activities in Singapore.

Singapore’s Minister for Finance, Lawrence Wong, was the guest-of-honor for the event, while distinguished guests in attendance included Swiss Ambassador to Singapore, Fabrice Filliez, as well as Founder of Bloomberg L.P. and Bloomberg Philanthropies, and three-term Mayor of the City of New York, Michael Bloomberg. In addition, well wishes poured in from many across the world, including Mercedes AMG-Petronas Formula One Driver Lewis Hamilton.

Ralph Hamers, UBS Group Chief Executive Officer said: “As the first Swiss bank in Singapore, we’re proud to celebrate our 50th anniversary of UBS Singapore. The Asia Pacific region continues to be a strategic priority for our firm, and I sincerely thank our clients and my UBS colleagues for their ongoing commitment. In the last half a century, Singapore has grown to be one of our top wealth management centres in Asia Pacific and our Investment Bank’s South-east Asian headquarters. I’m confident that UBS Singapore will continue to play a key role in helping us achieve our ambitious growth and sustainability goals, such as achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions across all our operations by 2050.”

A rising interest in sustainable investments among investors has led Asia’s sustainable bond market to grow rapidly over the past five years, and Singapore has benefited from this. Singapore remains an important financial center for the region and today, half of the international ESG bonds in Asia are listed on the Singapore Exchange (SGX).

Edmund Koh, UBS Asia Pacific President said: “The growth of UBS in Singapore is a reflection of the country’s success as an international finance hub. Singapore is the bank’s gateway to this region, bringing together people and ideas across the global UBS network. With the rise of Asian wealth, UBS has been the bank for Asian entrepreneurs, family offices and fast-growing tech firms. Looking ahead, we expect ASEAN’s new economy to more than double to USD800 billion by 2025, from USD380 billion. One example is how we are connecting the growing number of technology unicorns across the region. To this end, we are proud to launch TechConnect South-East Asia (SEA) in Singapore, which will help connect technopreneurs to our global network of clients, capital and expertise.”

August Hatecke, Country Head of UBS Singapore and Co-Head of Wealth Management Asia-Pacific said: “As a global bank linking Singapore to the rest of the world, we are also proud to play a role in developing talent and connecting ideas that drive progress and innovation. Singapore is home to our first and largest UBS University in Asia Pacific, which has groomed some of the top bankers in APAC out of Singapore. In addition, the innovation sandbox environment in Singapore has given us the ideal setting to pilot a new global initiative - Circle One - an app being developed out of Singapore by our local talent which will connect investors to ideas on a global ecosystem.”

As part of our 50th anniversary in Singapore, UBS is delighted to celebrate several milestones:

  1. The move to our new home at 9PR - Located on 400,000 sq ft of prime property in the heart of downtown Singapore, our new office represents our dedication and commitment to Singapore and the region. The sustainable building runs on 100% renewable energy, is the largest LEED Platinum project in SEA for interior offices, and is also certified Green Mark Platinum by BCA.
  2. Our very first global Cyber Fusion Center in Singapore where regional cyber threat intelligence, threat modelling and cyber operations are carried out.
  3. dedicated UBS Sustainable Finance hub in Singapore to support ESG growth in the region. 
  4. UBS’s first and largest UBS University in Asia Pacific, has groomed some of the top bankers in APAC out of Singapore. We also recently launched the UBS Singapore University Program for Employability and Resilience (UBS-SUPER) to nurture more than 300 graduates and mid-career professionals.
  5. The launch of TechConnect SEA, an ecosystem that will help tech companies scale up, connect and grow to become the next generation of unicorns in this region.
  6. The pilot of UBS Circle One, an app being developed out of Singapore by our local talent which will connect investors to ideas on a global ecosystem.
  7. The introduction of new community outreach activities including UBS Youth Academy @ 9PR, a specially curated enhancement and training education program for underserved children and youths.
  8. The UBS Sustainability and Resilience Learning Journey – (Trash-sure) project that UBS has kickstarted to engage youths, staff and the community. The campaign, which is in line with Singapore’s Green Plan 2030, will see us jointly launch a sculpture with sustainable street artist Bordalo II at the Gardens by the Bay.
  9. In partnership with Temasek Foundation, UBS this week announced the launch of The Mangrove 40 (M40) initiative, which will focus on mangrove conservation and restoration in 40 locations globally, starting from Asia. UBS has committed USD2 million to kickstart this global initiative from Singapore.

UBS in Singapore

Singapore is one of our top two major international booking centers for UBS's wealth management business in the region, the headquarters for UBS's investment banking business in South Asia, and the APAC hub for fx, rates and credit.

About UBS

UBS provides financial advice and solutions to wealthy, institutional and corporate clients worldwide, as well as private clients in Switzerland. UBS is the largest global wealth manager, and a leading personal and corporate bank in Switzerland, with a large-scale and diversified global asset manager and a focused investment bank. The bank focuses on businesses that have a strong competitive position in their targeted markets, are capital efficient, and have an attractive long-term structural growth or profitability outlook.

UBS is present in all major financial centers worldwide. It has offices in more than 50 regions and locations, with about 30% of its employees working in the Americas, 30% in Switzerland, 19% in the rest of Europe, the Middle East and Africa and 21% in Asia Pacific. UBS Group AG employs more than 72,000 people around the world. Its shares are listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

Media contacts:
Julie Yeo +65 9673 4433; julie.yeo@ubs.com
Adeline Lee +65 9753 2480; adeline.lee@ubs.com
Rachel Mui +65 9172 2587; rachel.mui@ubs.com