Geneva-based private banks Gonet & Cie and ONE swiss bank announced their plans to merge next year in a joint communiqué issued on Tuesday. The newly formed entity will operate under the Gonet brand and be led by Jean-René Lepezel, the current CEO of Gonet.

After acquiring Degroof Petercam Switzerland in January 2022, Gonet underwent a major shift in November 2022 when Arab Bank Switzerland, based in Jordan, acquired a 90% stake in the bank. By the end of 2023, Gonet managed 5.3 billion francs in assets and employed approximately 130 staff members. But it's complicated.

History of Consolidation

ONE swiss bank, led by Grégoire Pennone and previously known as Banque Bénédict Hentsch and later GS Banque (Geneva Swiss Bank), has seen a series of mergers and acquisitions. In June 2021, it merged with Banque Profil de Gestion, which itself had acquired Lugano-based Banca Arner in 2019, rebranding as ONE swiss bank.

In 2020, the bank also took over the assets of Zurich’s Falcon Private Bank, which had suffered from its involvement in the Malaysian 1MDB scandal. Meanwhile, Banque Profil de Gestion, originally established as Société Financière Privée in 1964, underwent several transformations before acquiring asset management firm Dynagest in 2018. By June 2024, ONE swiss bank managed 6.1 billion francs in assets and had around 80 employees.

New Entity

The merged bank will oversee approximately 12 billion francs in assets, with offices across Switzerland (Geneva, Cologny, Lausanne, Zurich, and Lugano) and operational units in the Bahamas and Dubai.

Majority Stake From the Middle East

Arab Bank Switzerland, Gonet’s majority shareholder and led by Serge Robin, will play a pivotal role. The bank, founded in Switzerland in 1962, is an independent sister company of Arab Bank (Plc), one of the largest banks in the Middle East. Arab Bank Switzerland currently manages approximately 20 billion francs in assets.

Staged Transaction With Completion by Mid-2025

The transaction will unfold in phases, beginning with Gonet acquiring a majority stake in ONE swiss bank. Subject to regulatory approval from FINMA, the merger is expected to be completed by mid-2025. Until then, both institutions will maintain their individual identities and governance structures.

Strategic Expansion Opportunities

The merger will enable Dynagest, ONE swiss bank’s asset management division and a pioneer in quantitative asset management in Switzerland, to expand its offerings by leveraging the expertise of Gonet’s teams. Additionally, the new entity will benefit from the product portfolio of Arab Bank Switzerland.

Some details in this report were sourced from the Geneva finance blog «Finance Corner».