International presence – local ties

Through the brands “Liechtensteinische Landesbank” and “Bank Linth”, the Private Banking Division defines its international presence and solid local ties. Our focus lies on the onshore markets of Liechtenstein, Switzerland and Austria, on our traditional cross-border markets of Germany and other parts of Western Europe, as well as on the growth markets of Central and Eastern Europe and the Middle East.

The LLB Group operates three booking centres and has a bank each in Liechtenstein, in Switzerland and in Austria. We are present internationally in Vaduz, Zurich-Erlenbach, Geneva, Vienna, Abu Dhabi and Dubai, as well as locally through nineteen branches of Bank Linth in eastern Switzerland and the three LLB branches in Liechtenstein.

The LLB Group’s business model aims at its clients meeting tax compliance requirements (see chapter “Regulatory framework and developments”). It is of central importance for our cross-border banking that strict compliance with prevailing regulations is maintained. By providing intensive training courses, the LLB Group ensures that its employees fulfil the regulations of the target countries and observe tax compliance rules during their cross-border activities.

Liechtenstein, Switzerland and Austria

Liechtenstein, Switzerland and Austria, as financial centres, possess a high potential to attract investors who are seeking security and stability for their investments. In 2018, we posted gratifying client asset inflows both in private banking in Liechtenstein and with clients in the Swiss and Austrian market regions.

Our bank in Vienna provides a particularly inspiring success story. It reached break-even point in 2014 after only five years of development. Thanks to the merger with Semper Constantia Privatbank AG, LLB Österreich has advanced to become the leading asset management bank in private banking and institutional business in Austria. Thanks to its strong position in private banking, its custodian bank and investment fund business as well as its real estate activities, Semper Constantia represents an ideal platform for the expansion of the LLB Group’s activities in Austria. LLB Österreich can now offer its clients an even broader spectrum of diversified products and services.

Traditional cross-border markets

Germany, Europe’s largest private banking market, and other Western European markets continue to be important for our asset management. We benefit here from our extensive experience and the trust of our clients in the quality of our services and the good performance of our asset management.

Central and Eastern Europe

The LLB Group has achieved further growth in the Central and Eastern European EU states and in the key market of Russia. The stability and security provided by the LLB Group, as well as the specific market and product experience of our client advisers and investment specialists in Zurich-Erlenbach, Geneva, Vaduz and Vienna are key success factors. In 2018, we again strengthened our client advisory team for these markets, which had a positive impact on the acquisition of new business.

Middle East

In 2018, the LLB Group achieved very pleasing growth in the Middle East market region; it makes an ever larger contribution to the Division’s overall performance. From our representative offices in Dubai (since 2008) and Abu Dhabi (since 2005) we take care of various client groups from the United Arab Emirates and the Gulf region. As one of the few foreign banks, we provide our clients with access to the stock markets in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. In order to strengthen and expand our position in the Middle East, we are planning to move into substantially larger business premises in Dubai’s International Financial Centre (DIFC) in 2019.