Geneva-based Swiss bank Union Bancaire Privée is on a mission to win back the goodwill of its investors. The bank took a pummeling from clients when it revealed its $700 million–plus exposure to the fraud perpetrated by Bernard Madoff. UBP, which has seen its total assets under management drop nearly 20 percent, to $75.58 billion through June, is now recruiting senior asset management talent to burnish its reputation.
In July, hedge fund specialist Sara Sprung joined UBP Asset Management, the investment management arm of UBP, as chief investment officer of alternatives. Previously, she was a portfolio manager at New York–based asset management firm Fortress Investment Group as well as the chief risk officer responsible for its liquid markets business. The 48-year-old will help determine the top-down global asset allocation of UBP’s funds of hedge funds.
Thanks to the crisis, Sprung says, the group now has better visibility than ever into its managers’ strategies. “Everyone in the hedge fund industry is interested in communicating more effectively and having better transparency,” she says. “Some managers have even gone so far as to apologize to their investors because they realize they simply weren’t doing enough.”
