In a bid to deliver current financial information and help people make informed choices in daily life, family finances, savings, and investments, Banco Sabadell joined with Information and the Information Club in a new edition of Easy Financing for the Domestic Economy.
This program unfolds across four cycles of digital forums held throughout the year, inviting participants to engage. The goal for Banco Sabadell’s various business units is to equip attendees with practical tools and valuable guidance to manage their money as efficiently as possible.
This first digital forum cycle, Private Banking, appeared on the BİLGİ website yesterday and drew a crowd eager to learn the opportunities and nuances this segment offers.
Banco Sabadell’s Private Banking head for the Eastern Region, Óscar Pérez, joined a discussion hosted by Information Club director Toni Cabot, addressing key questions that illuminate the new private banking model and shared insights into the challenges, risks, and outlook for financial markets.
remodel
Óscar Pérez opened with remarks on renewing the private banking model at Banco Sabadell. The refresh aims to strengthen the value proposition for customers within the new macroeconomic context that began late last year.
Specifically, about 300,000 customers from the retail banking segment were identified, with roughly 60,000 showing interest in business, savings, and heritage advice. These clients are being incorporated into private banking, marking a notable shift for the segment both in scale and quality. The result is a private banking client base of around 93,000.
A sub-segmentation considered existing client assets above one million euros, ensuring access to services needing minimal presence and tailoring offers to the needs and possibilities of each client group.
On organizing the new model, Pérez explained that six regional departments in the bank are used to integrate private banking professionals into each region. This structure strengthens organizational clarity and supports the delivery of the best possible value to customers.
At one point, a moment captured the exchange between Toni Cabot and Óscar Pérez on the INFORMACIÓN TV set.
A pivotal point in Pérez’s remarks was the renewal of the private banking model at Banco Sabadell. He noted that the review aims to improve the customer value proposition in light of the current macroeconomic context.
The discussion highlighted the growth in the number of clients relocated to private banking, and the emphasis on a targeted approach to customers with assets exceeding one million euros. This strategic move is expected to enhance the client experience and offer tailored solutions.
He stressed the strength of the relationship between the company and the private sector, noting close collaboration with the commercial network, self-employment and small business segments, and larger corporate clients. This alliance is viewed as a major driver of growth for all parties involved.
Organic growth and formation
Asked about growth strategies through acquisitions or new signings, Pérez stated that Banco Sabadell is not pursuing growth via acquisitions at the moment, as there are no corporate deals on the table in the near term. Regarding new signings, the private banking segment does not anticipate large contracts, given the bank’s professionally trained staff across all areas.
Banco Sabadell’s private banking leadership noted that almost all commercial personnel hold the necessary MiFID certification to provide compliant advice. Among highly specialized private bankers, more than 90% have formal training and a higher level of proficiency.
Pérez recently added that training continues to advance, with ongoing instruction in areas such as IDD, LCCI, and other financial aspects of world insurance and mortgage markets.
Agreement with Amundi
Pérez also discussed the Banco Sabadell-Amundi agreement in the digital forum, underscoring both qualitative satisfaction and supporting quantitative data. The alliance is shown to deliver expertise and quality previously unavailable. The emphasis is on a steady supply of funds, since the last two years have seen the majority of inflows concentrated in the first and second quarters, with the figure rising to 84% in 2022. This suggests Amundi funds have outperformed other options for many investors.
He shared impressive numbers from 2021, when net fund production rose from 1,000 million euros to 3,000 million euros with market contribution. In 2022, despite market adversity, production remained around 1,000 million euros. The alliance with Amundi helped Banco Sabadell grow through the period, and the partnership continues to be viewed positively.
Asset Allocation
At the meeting, the Eastern Region Private Banking Director described how asset allocations are built from the business perspective: starting with a quantitative model, then integrating the bank’s own view to create a combined approach. In practice, this means a model that starts with a theoretical framework and adapts to the client’s risk profile and individual needs.
That information is transformed into tailored recommendations for each client, reflecting a blend of mathematical insights and real-world perspectives.
digitization
The discussion then turned to digitization, a major topic for private banking and the developments expected in 2023. The bank approaches digitization from two angles.
The expert highlighted two main risks: inflation and growth. The strategy aims to provide the best possible service, making the banker more efficient and reducing errors through digital tools. It also focuses on enhancing the customer experience, enabling clients to make decisions confidently with self-service access to information and transactions.
In closing, the speaker noted that ongoing studies in the private banking segment support substantial investments in digitalization and the improvement of many processes.
Risks and prospects for financial markets
Pérez, the Private Banking Director for the Eastern Region, clarified that forecasting market movements remains uncertain, but identified two main risks: inflation and growth. Inflation could be hard to tame and may alter the macro outlook, potentially requiring higher or longer rate hikes than currently expected.
The second risk involves possible rate increases triggering a deeper recession than anticipated. A mild recession is possible in the United States with less certainty in Europe, but this is not viewed as a major concern; still, there is a chance the scenario could worsen.
Regarding market outlook, Pérez suggested overall positive performance is likely. Returns in both fixed income and equities are expected to improve, with fixed income offering particular opportunities in the near term. The recent rise in interest rates has created value in the fixed income space, even as yields remain cautious for investors.
He noted that a diversified, medium-low risk bond portfolio might target around 200 basis points of inflation-adjusted cost efficiency, a level that could help surpass anticipated inflation over the next three to four years—a scenario uncommon in the past decade. On equities, the recommendation is to wait for year-end for more stable bets.