Finding a private banker in Lugano based on your situation

Lugano, Switzerland's third financial centre

The Federal Department of Foreign Affairs describes Lugano as Switzerland's third financial centre, after Zurich and Geneva (page published on 7 December 2020). Choosing a banker there depends less on a list of names than on a few practical questions: who will look after you, in which language, how well they will understand the links between your situation and Italy or another canton, and where you will meet.

This page is for people who live in Ticino or are moving there, from another canton or from abroad, and who are considering entrusting substantial financial assets to a private banker. We wrote it primarily for available financial assets of more than one million Swiss francs. This figure is a guide, not an entry requirement: each institution sets its own criteria for taking on new clients. For an overview of the selection criteria, see our page on Swiss private banks.

Institutions with an office in Lugano

The list below shows, in alphabetical order, the institutions in our database for which we have verified an office serving private clients in Lugano. Being an AlpineCompare partner changes neither the order of the list nor whether an institution appears in it.

This list does not cover every institution active in Lugano: it covers those in our database whose presence in Lugano is published by the institution itself. The information published on institutions is indicative and must be confirmed with the institution concerned.

What matters when choosing a banker in Lugano

Here are the criteria to look at when choosing a private banker in Lugano, and the question that lets you check each one in a first conversation.

Domicile deserves an explicit question. Banks often organise their private clients by country of domicile: if you live in Switzerland, it helps to know from the first contact whether your banker usually looks after people domiciled here, and how they will handle any links between your situation and Italy.

An office in Lugano makes meeting in person easier, but on its own it says nothing about how your relationship will be organised: your banker may be attached to another office, and some of your exchanges may take place remotely. If you live around Locarno, in Bellinzona or in the Mendrisiotto, ask where your meetings would take place.

The AlpineCompare simulator asks you questions close to these criteria: your project, the amount involved, your canton, your language and what you expect from your banker.

A few situations to clarify early on

If you are moving to Ticino from another canton, at retirement for instance, language becomes a practical matter: ask whether your banker can look after you in English, German or French, and in which language you will receive your documents. It is also worth discussing what happens to the relationship with the bank that looks after you today in your current canton.

If your family has Italian roots, or you own a business or assets in Italy, a first conversation is more useful once you have an overview of what is held in Switzerland and what is held abroad. Tax and inheritance questions involving two countries are for a tax adviser or a lawyer; you can ask the banker how they take these elements into account in organising the relationship.

If you are coming from abroad and preparing to move to Ticino, your request must be made on your own initiative. You can already gather the documents on the origin of your assets and on your future domicile: institutions address these topics when opening a relationship. For other situations, such as an inheritance or the sale of a property, see our page on your situation.

Different types of institution

In Lugano, as elsewhere in Switzerland, a wealth management relationship can be held with a private bank, a universal bank, a cantonal bank or an independent asset manager. What distinguishes these models is explained on our page on types of institution and selection criteria.

Ticino's cantonal bank is the Banca dello Stato del Cantone Ticino (‘BancaStato’ in the list), governed by a cantonal law of 25 October 1988, with its head office in Bellinzona. It appears in the list: a document from the bank on its advisory services says that an appointment can be made at one of its four branches, in Bellinzona, Locarno, Lugano and Chiasso. The document does not say how its private banking is organised from one branch to another.

If you are considering an independent asset manager, you can check that it appears on the list, published by FINMA, of portfolio managers licensed by FINMA and monitored by a supervisory organisation.

Preparing your first conversation

A first conversation is more useful once you have clarified a few points. Before your meeting, you can prepare:

• the amount you are thinking of entrusting and what it consists of: cash, securities already invested, the proceeds of a sale;
• where your assets are held today: in Switzerland, in Italy or in another country;
• what you expect from the relationship: management of your investments, organising capital you have received, preparing to pass on your wealth;
• your timetable, for example the date of your move to Ticino or the date on which funds will become available;
• the language you wish to use, spoken and written, including for documents;
• the contact details of the professionals who already work with you, such as a fiduciary or a tax adviser;
• a question on the documents needed to open the relationship.

During the conversation, note each banker's answers on the same points: you can then compare several proposals on a common basis.

How AlpineCompare puts you in touch in Lugano

AlpineCompare is an introduction service and has no office in Lugano. The simulator asks you about your project, the amount involved, your canton of residence, your language and what you expect from your banker. Once your phone number is verified, you obtain a selection of private bankers from our partner institutions, with the option to be put in touch with one of them or to ask to be called back; nothing is passed to any partner until you have confirmed one of these two requests. A banker's direct contact details, where the banker provides them, are shown only after you have confirmed the introduction to that banker or asked that banker to call you back: this confirmation is your agreement to your request being passed to that banker and their institution, which receive it at that moment; AlpineCompare records this agreement and may rely on it with the institution to establish that the relationship arose through its introduction.

For each banker, the selection shows their institution, city and languages, so you can see whether a banker is based in Lugano, elsewhere in Ticino or in another city. If you send them a request, that banker and their institution may contact you; the arrangements for a meeting are then agreed with them.

• AlpineCompare is paid by the partner institution, under a business-introduction agreement, when a client it introduced signs a contract with that institution; the service is free for you.
• Only private bankers of partners can be presented to you; institutions without a partnership are described on the site in the same way as the others.
• Remuneration plays no part in the selection of the profiles shown or in their order.
• The selection depends on the partner bankers whose profile matches your request; it may include bankers based in other cities.