Is UBS mostly hiring the unemployed?

2 February 2010

2 minute read

Not everyone UBS is hiring was previously out of the market, but a significant proportion of them are.

By our estimates, it's appointed no fewer than nine people from the garden/golf club/beach/ sofa since November, including Rob Joliffe (ex-RBS), Salvatore di Stasi (ex-Goldman), Neal Shear and Roberto Hoornweg (ex-Morgan Stanley), and a five person distressed debt team (formerly of Credit Suisse).

UBS would probably argue that it's simply making the most of the talented people who left the market, voluntarily or otherwise, during 2008. Equally, it could argue that it's been cheaper to bring in people who were out of the market than to buy out someone still in employment.

Nevertheless, the influx does raise eyebrows about UBS's ability to attract people from rival firms. Yesterday, the Swiss justice minister issued a warning that UBS could "fail" unless the tax row with the US is resolved, which is hardly a vote of confidence in the bank's future.

Anyone (unemployed or otherwise) contemplating joining UBS will be pleased to hear, however, that failure is highly unlikely. "I really can't see how it would come to that," says Simon Maughan, a European banks analyst at MF Global. "If UBS had to get out of the US, it's far more likely they'd sell up quietly and go home - they've got plenty of assets there that they could dispose of."

UBS reports its fourth quarter earnings next week. Last week, Oswald Gruebel said he won't be getting a bonus

this year, but that other people will, otherwise the good ones will leave. If that were the case, UBS could be obliged to find even more non-working bankers to plug its gaps.

AUTHORSarah Butcher

Global Editor

Ka
Kay
4 February 2010
Sarah says "the article simply points out that UBS has hired a lot of unemployed people and from that it may be inferred that people from rival firms are not keen to work there (given that other banks haven't gone down the unemployed route)". The alternative interpretation given the seniority and reputation of people like Misra, di Stasi and Salaverri is that UBS is extremely attractive to individuals who have stepped out of the market (mostly via mutual exit), been courted by many rival firms, and waited for the "right " opportunity to return to the market. Surely that's to their credit, rather than the opposite, that those with the to stay on the beach or playing hedge funds have decided instead to join a recovery story?
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DF
DF
3 February 2010
The statement from the Swiss Justice Minister was taken out of context - perhaps you should have added that to the article. If you read the brief probably you would have seen that she did not warn the bank would fail
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at
attheendoftheday
3 February 2010
UBS is better than a giro, i suppose.
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dd
dd
3 February 2010
i frequently wonder, on reading comments like Simon's/guy's/xmix's/etc, whether anyone in the world is actually capable of simply reading what's written, rather than haring off on personal-offence-seeking tangents.
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Si
Simon
3 February 2010
I am one of the great unwashed unemployed hired by UBS. I am VERY offended by this article in many ways. Does Sarah think I had no choice because I was not employed? I certainly did have choices, and I CHOSE to join UBS above other IBs because it is a great institution with great leadership and a plan to return to its rightful place at the top of the heap.
I also chose to join UBS for less money than other banks were offering, because it has much better positioning and prospects. I believe that my new colleauges feel the same way, and I am proud to be part of such a talented team.
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