UBS Virtual Museum
1862
Bank in Winterthur
Bank in Winterthur is the historical starting point of today’s UBS. In 1912, Bank in Winterthur merged with Toggenburger Bank to form Union Bank of Switzerland.
1862
Warehouse
There was a push to transform Winterthur into Switzerland’s leading cargo handling center while Bank in Winterthur was being founded. The bank was therefore tasked with managing a warehouse built by the Winterthur Chamber of Commerce (“Kaufmännische Gesellschaft Winterthur”).
1863
Toggenburger Bank
Toggenburger Bank, founded in Lichtensteig in Eastern Switzerland in 1863, is the second predecessor of Union Bank of Switzerland. It did business as a commercial and currency-issuing bank; it also focused on domestic mortgage and savings business. Toggenburger Bank was one of the few banks authorized to issue banknotes until the Swiss National Bank was founded in 1906.
1864
Eidgenössische Bank
Eidgenössische Bank was established in Switzerland’s capital, Berne, in 1864. Between 1864 and 1882, it issued its own banknotes that could be redeemed at branches and partner banks in and outside Switzerland. Eidgenössische Bank was taken over by Union Bank of Switzerland in 1945.
1872
Basler Bankverein
The merger of Basler Bankverein with Zürcher Bankverein in 1896 and then with Basler Depositen-Bank one year later created Swiss Bank Corporation (SBC) in 1897. SBC and Union Bank of Switzerland merged to form UBS in 1998.
1880
Paine Webber
Paine & Webber was founded by William A. Paine and Wallace G. Webber in Boston, USA, in 1880. A partnership was formed with Charles H. Paine in 1881 and renamed Paine, Webber & Co. Paine Webber, as the company was called after 1984. At the time, that it was acquired by UBS (in 2000), it had grown to become the fourth largest US private bank with over 8,500 client advisors and a network of 385 locations.
1896
Banca Svizzera Americana
Banca Svizzera Americana was founded in 1896 with its headquarters in Locarno and satellite offices in Lugano and San Francisco. Banca Svizzera Americana merged with Union Bank of Switzerland in 1920, allowing the latter to gain a foothold in Italian-speaking Switzerland.
1898
Branch of Swiss Bank Corporation in London
Swiss Bank Corporation opened its first branch in London under the name Swiss Bankverein in 1898. This was the first branch of a Swiss bank in London, then the center of world trade and finance. During World War I, the bank had to deny several newspaper rumors that it was under German control. This was one of the reasons why the London branch changed its name from Swiss Bankverein to Swiss Bank Corporation (SBC) in 1917.
1899
Swiss Bank Corporation moves to Paradeplatz
In the same year that Basler Bankverein merged with Zürcher Bankverein (1886), the bank obtained land at Paradeplatz in Zurich, located directly opposite the headquarters of its competitor, Schweizerische Kreditanstalt (predecessor to today's Credit Suisse). After two years of construction using plans by architect Charles Mewès, the bank, by then called “Swiss Bank Corporation” (SBC), moved into the building in 1899. The monumental building lasted 57 years and was replaced in 1956 by a larger complex between Talstrasse, Talacker and Bärengasse.
1906
The expansion into western Switzerland
It was as early as 1875 that Basler Bank Corporation received a suggestion from Geneva – a financial center rich in tradition – to open a branch of the bank there. However, the idea was not realized until 1905 by the Swiss Bank Corporation (SBC), when a chance to take over the banking and commission business of the venerable firm d’Espine Fatio & Cie presented itself. On 15 February 1906, SBC opened the doors of its Geneva branch, which was still run by the partners of the company it had just acquired. In 1912, Swiss Bank Corporation acquired the Banque d’Escompte et de Dépôts in Lausanne, its second branch in French-speaking Switzerland, and in that same year moved into its new bank building in Geneva.
1909
New Swiss Bank Corporation headquarters located at Aeschenvorstadt 1
In 1909, Swiss Bank Corporation (SBC) moved its headquarters, previously at Aeschenvorstadt 72, St. Alban-Graben, to Aeschenvorstadt 1. SBC’s new headquarters added a fresh accent to the cityscape with its striking structure, the historic facade of which dominates two streets. The bank retained the office at Aeschenvorstadt 72 for an additional four years before leasing it to affiliated businesses.
1912
Merger of Toggenburger Bank and the Bank in Winterthur to form Union Bank of Switzerland
Toggenburger Bank focused on business in Eastern Switzerland and St. Gallen specializing in the embroidery industry. However, that meant it was also affected by crises in this industry. The Bank in Winterthur had a broad-based business and ties to various industries. However, its size and capital base increasingly prevented it from catching up with the banks it was competing with. It therefore decided to increase its capital stock and business and customer base by merging with Toggenburger Bank.
1912
Swiss Bank Corporation’s Chairman and one of his successors survive the sinking of the Titanic
On 15 April 1912, at 2:20 a.m., the luxury liner RMS Titanic sank on its maiden voyage across the North Atlantic. The 255-meter-long steel giant struck an iceberg just before midnight, resulting in a 32-meter-long gash. Of the 2,200 passengers, Alphons Simonius-Blumer (Chairman of the Board of Directors of Swiss Bank Corporation (SBC)) and Max Staehelin (then director of Swiss Trust Company and later himself Chairman of the SBC) were among the 700 survivors. They had been traveling to New York on business to visit a branch of a Swiss embroidery company that needed renovation and the assets of which had been acquired by SBC.
1914
The first adding machine marks the beginning of mechanization
In the early years of the last century, Union Bank of Switzerland was automating as many of its work processes as it could. A lack of qualified personnel and the desire to free workers from burdensome tasks while boosting productivity were the motivations behind this. The first adding machine was purchased in 1914, and, 12 years later, the accounting department had 8 adding machines, 16 accounting machines, 7 electric relay machines, 22 mechanical calculators and 2 typewriters at its disposal.
1917
Union Bank of Switzerland moves to Münzhof
The Zurich branch of the Bank in Winterthur had 25 employees in 1906; ten years later, this number had increased tenfold. Due to the limited amount of space available, the Board of Directors decided to purchase a property formerly owned by the Schinz family (textile manufacturers and merchants), on the other side of the street, for a new bank building. In 1917, Union Bank of Switzerland opened its new Münzhof building at Bahnhofstrasse 45 after two years of construction. The bank relocated its headquarters from Winterthur and St. Gallen to this location in 1945.
1919
Union Bank of Switzerland merges with Aargauische Creditanstalt
The merger of Union Bank of Switzerland with Aargauische Creditanstalt (founded in 1872) was approved by the shareholders of the former at a general meeting held on 8 March 1919. The share capital was raised to CHF 60 million, an increase of CHF 10 million. The branch network of Union Bank of Switzerland was further expanded by the merger with Aargauische Creditanstalt, adding branches in Aarau, Baden, Laufenburg, Wohlen, and Liestal. The relationship between the two banks had been in place for some time. In 1913 they considered a formal community of interest, but at the time independence and its reputation was crucial to the Aargauische Creditanstalt. But soon after the First World War things had changed, and a merger presented a new opportunity.
1922
The opening of the new Union Bank of Switzerland office in Aarau
The Aargauische Creditanstalt had begun looking for a suitable location for a bigger and (most importantly) more centrally located new building as early as 1910. A favorable chance emerged when a property close to the train station and originally intended to serve as a post office came up for sale. In 1916, the new structure’s foundations were laid. Construction lasted from 1920 to the end of 1921 and saw tower cranes being used for the first time in Aarau. Following the relocation, Union Bank of Switzerland sold to the National Bank the building on Schlossplatz that had been built by Aargauische Creditanstalt.
The new building was presented in a brochure published to mark the opening.
1922
Swiss Bank Corporation’s low-key celebration of its 50th anniversary
The post-war depression, which was due to the severe effects of the enormous destruction of the first world war, started at the same time as the 50th anniversary of Swiss Bank Corporation (SBC). It wasn’t just Swiss businesses and industry that were affected, the railroads and the hotel sector also faced crises. Due to pressure from sovereign defaults and currency disruption, financial institutions had to be supported and restructured.
1922
A revolution in accounting
Prior to the introduction of the accounting machine, all accounting was done by hand, using pen and ink on bound, heavy books. Both Union Bank of Switzerland and Swiss Bank Corporation (SBC) experienced the wave of automation at the same time in 1922. The fiche system (card indexing), which was introduced along with the technological advancement of the accounting machine, allowed bookkeeping to be done on loose sheets. Over the following ten years, this caused the accounting department’s output to more than double.
1930
Swiss Bank Corporation offices at the Zurich stock exchange
As one of the most significant stock exchange banks, Swiss Bank Corporation (SBC) already had a stock exchange room in the magnificent, historic former Zurich Stock Exchange building at Bahnhofstrasse 3. Dealers could place orders “à la criée” in the trading ring while taking orders from clients over the phone. In 1928, work on building a new stock exchange began, due to the increasingly congested conditions and the antiquated technical infrastructure. SBC also had a separate exchange room, located just a few steps away from the trading rings.
1938
Three keys for Swiss Bank Corporation
UBS without the three-keys logo? Unimaginable! The three crossed keys without the UBS lettering are equally unthinkable. These two components have combined to create the distinctive UBS logo since 1998. The three keys, however, are about 60 years older: prior to the 1998 merger, they belonged to Swiss Bank Corporation (SBC).
1939
Turbulent years at the New York branch office
Swiss Bank Corporation (SBC) made a number of attempts after its founding aimed at establishing itself in the “new world of unlimited opportunities.” As the North American region grew in economic importance and there were more and more trouble spots in Europe, SBC decided toward the end of the 1930s to open a branch office in New York. More specifically, it opened its office on 4 July 1939, at 15 Nassau Street, close to the stock exchange. SBC hoped that the New York office would develop in a similar fashion to the London office, which had enjoyed a successful track record since 1898. The State of New York’s banking department gave its approval for the office’s transformation into a full branch in 1963.
1944
Union Bank of Switzerland Takes Over Creditanstalt in Lucerne
Union Bank of Switzerland expanded its presence in central Switzerland by acquiring Creditanstalt in Lucerne (founded in 1872). Nearly another 20 years elapsed before SBC opened its first location in the city of lights, a branch which started its operations in 1963.
Today, the UBS Lucerne branch is located on Bahnhofplatz. The first premises of its predecessor were located on Kapellplatz and later on Schwanenplatz.
1947
Introduction of punched-card technology
Punched cards for mechanical data processing were first used in the US census in 1890. Almost 50 years were to pass before the technology developed by American engineer Herman Hollerith made the leap across the Atlantic, where it was deployed for data collection and storage by our two predecessor institutions, Swiss Bank Corporation (SBC) and Union Bank of Switzerland. The first transition involved only mechanization; for internal use, the results of entries and accounts were punched, checked, and stacked. Our predecessor banks then gradually replaced traditional account books with their first machine-readable data storage.
1956
The bank’s first computer
With the commissioning of the UNIVAC 120 type from Remington Rand at the start of 1956, Union Bank of Switzerland entered the computer era. The 1,400-kilogram machine’s programmability, mastery of the four fundamental functions and ability to electrically buffer outcomes made it revolutionary. It was capable of handling both the calculation of deposit balances and coupon settlements, and it did so much faster than its mechanical predecessors. However, each operation was recalculated backward for control reasons. With an order for the IBM 1401/7070 five years later, SBC also ushered in the era of electronic data processing.
1958
The drive-in bank
In the 1950s, cars became synonymous with progress and the economic boom, but that wasn’t all: they were also the pride of the whole family. Everything had to be reachable from inside the vehicle, ideally from the driver’s seat. Union Bank of Switzerland opening Switzerland’s first drive-in counter, at its Zurich Wiedikon city branch, in June 1958 generated a huge buzz. However, the drive-in bank proved to be only a fleeting success, unlike the cash dispensers (ATMs) introduced some years later. The last drive-in bank branch had closed by the early 1980s.
1965
The first TV commercial
For the first ten years of its existence Swiss television was commercial-free. On 1 February 1965, the first commercial break was shown. Union Bank of Switzerland was among the first companies to use the advertising medium, along with Pepsi, Ovomaltine and Opel even though there had initially been a debate at the bank over using TV advertising. The TV commercial was intended by some of the bank’s marketing experts to demonstrate its progressiveness, but detractors were worried that the new medium wouldn’t be appropriate for “the position and reputation of a large bank.” SBC aired its first TV commercial in 1967.
1965
SBC starts its business in Tokyo – followed by Union Bank of Switzerland a year later
Swiss Bank Corporation (SBC) opened an office in Tokyo’s Marunouchi business district in 1965, after recognizing in the early 1960s the future potential of Japan’s economic growth and the growing trade with the country. This provided Japanese business clients and foreign ventures in East Asia with the services of a commercial bank. However, retail banking and securities trading were prohibited by Japanese banking law. The start of investment banking operations by Union Bank of Switzerland and SBC in 1966 would be supporting Japan’s economic growth in the 1970s and 1980s.
1967
The first cash dispenser
The move from drive-in banking to cash dispenser withdrawals was a logical one. However, the automation needed for this required a number of preparatory steps. The first generation of cash dispensers required the user to withdraw reference checks of CHF 200 each in advance. Those checks made it possible to withdraw money whenever needed. Union Bank of Switzerland was the first bank in Switzerland to introduce a cash dispenser. A year later came the Bancomat, a unified cash dispenser system by the Swiss banks. 23 such machines were operational at the beginning of 1969.
1972
UBS takes over Pozzy Bank
In addition to opening a new branch in Switzerland’s Puschlav valley, Union Bank of Switzerland acquired the banking division of the Pozzy trading company in 1972. Pozzy Bank was founded in 1747, making it the oldest of all the banks acquired by UBS to date. Pozzy Bank is still the oldest of the 370 or so UBS predecessor institutions: none of the banks acquired by Swiss Bank Corporation were established even remotely as early as Pozzy Bank. UBS maintained operations of the Poschiavo branch until 2021.
