Concept
EFG, J. Safra Sarasin and Vontobel provide private banking and investment services through groups whose Swiss banking entities are EFG Bank AG, Bank J. Safra Sarasin AG and Bank Vontobel AG. All three appear in the FINMA bank register. Their differences concern how the relationship is managed, which entity holds the account, and which investment service the client receives.
A private banking relationship can combine cash accounts, securities custody, investment advice and a portfolio-management mandate. These services need not be supplied by the same company. A bank can hold the assets while a separate adviser or external asset manager manages the portfolio. The service model determines who makes investment decisions, which fees apply and which legal relationship continues if the individual banker or manager changes.
Service models
EFG organises client relationships around a Client Relationship Officer, or CRO. The banker coordinates the relationship within the bank’s central compliance and risk controls. This model gives the contact person an important coordinating role; it does not give that person an independent power to waive legal restrictions. EFG offers advisory services, where the client decides, and discretionary management, where investment decisions are delegated under a mandate.
J. Safra Sarasin combines a family-owned Swiss bank with overseas branches, separate banks and investment-advisory businesses. Its network therefore offers several legal forms of service. A relationship with its Luxembourg bank, its Singapore branch or its North American investment adviser has a different contractual and regulatory structure, even though the group name is shared.
Vontobel’s Swiss offer distinguishes Advice, Delegate and Select: advice with client decisions, delegated portfolio management, and investment modules implemented by Vontobel. It also has the separate Volt digital investment offer and Swiss Financial Advisers, or SFA, for a defined international client base. A digital investment account, an SFA programme and a private banking mandate have different entry conditions and prices.
The principal parameters concern both the banking relationship and the investment service.
| Parameter | Scope |
|---|---|
| Swiss banks | EFG Bank AG; Bank J. Safra Sarasin AG; Bank Vontobel AG |
| Swiss supervisor | FINMA |
| Investment decisions | Client-directed advice or delegated management, depending on the mandate |
| Account location | The named bank or branch in the account contract |
| Minimum capital | Specific to the relationship or programme |
| Costs | Banking, management, transactions and product expenses |
Comparability requires the same service, contracting entity and account location; a price for one advisory programme cannot stand for all services of its group.
Ownership and banking locations
EFG
EFG International AG is the listed holding company. Its 2025 annual report identifies wholly owned bank subsidiaries in Switzerland, Monaco, the Bahamas, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg and the United Kingdom; the Miami company EFG Capital International Corp is a broker-dealer. The report describes a presence in more than 40 locations, a broader measure than the number of bank booking centres.
The Swiss bank’s 2025 report lists branches in Hong Kong, Singapore, the Cayman Islands and Guernsey, and a Bahrain advisory branch in liquidation processes. Hong Kong’s register identifies EFG Bank AG as a Licensed Bank; MAS lists its Singapore establishment as a Wholesale Bank. An address in the group directory does not, by itself, establish local deposit-taking or availability to a particular resident.
J. Safra Sarasin
Bank J. Safra Sarasin AG belongs to J. Safra Sarasin Holding Ltd. The holding’s 2025 report identifies Vicky Safra and some of her children as ultimate owners. It distinguishes Swiss-bank branches in Guernsey, Hong Kong and Singapore from separate group banks in Gibraltar, Luxembourg, Monaco and the Bahamas. London is a branch of the Gibraltar bank; Amsterdam, Madrid, Milan and Paris belong to the Luxembourg branch network.
The group reported assets under management of about CHF 224.2 billion for 2024 and CHF 228.5 billion for 2025. Its reporting definition includes double counting; these figures do not measure bank deposits. The March 2026 results release described more than 35 group locations following the majority acquisition of Saxo. By 12 September 2026, Saxo’s ownership disclosure states that Bank J. Safra Sarasin AG wholly owns Saxo Holding AG, which holds all shares in Saxo Bank A/S. Saxo remains a separate legal entity.
GFSC authorises the Gibraltar bank to accept deposits. HKMA classifies the Hong Kong establishment as a Licensed Bank; MAS classifies Singapore as a Wholesale Bank. Dubai’s DFSA permissions cover investment arranging, advice and arranging custody. The bank’s 2025 report describes the Doha entity’s activity as advisory. Those forms of presence are distinct from a local deposit-taking bank.
Vontobel
Vontobel Holding AG is separate from Bank Vontobel AG, its wholly owned Swiss banking subsidiary. The 2025 report distinguishes Private Clients and Institutional Clients. The family pooling agreement covers 50.9% of capital and votes and cannot be terminated before the end of 2036; the group is not wholly family-owned.
Vontobel’s Asian entities perform different activities. Its report lists Vontobel (Hong Kong) Ltd for distribution and advisory activities, separately from Vontobel Limited in liquidation. In Singapore, MAS lists Vontobel Pte. Ltd for capital-markets dealing and exempt financial advice, rather than banking. LGT’s announcement of 25 August 2022 offered Vontobel’s Hong Kong private clients a transfer to LGT. That announcement does not establish that every portfolio transferred or that every Asian Vontobel business closed.
Comparison of the three groups
The relevant differences are the service model and the legal entity supplying it.
| Attribute | EFG | J. Safra Sarasin | Vontobel |
|---|---|---|---|
| Relationship model | CRO coordinates banking and investment services | Swiss bank, overseas banking network and separate advisers | Advice, delegated management, investment modules and separate digital services |
| Ownership | Listed holding company | Safra family holding | Listed holding with family voting control |
| Swiss headquarters | Zurich | Basel | Zurich |
| Overseas banking | Separate bank subsidiaries and Swiss-bank branches | Separate bank subsidiaries and Swiss-bank branches | Asian capital-markets/advisory entities have different permissions from banks |
| Hong Kong / Singapore | Licensed Bank / Wholesale Bank | Licensed Bank / Wholesale Bank | Local presence does not establish a bank account service |
| Specialist adviser | Americas adviser generally serves non-US clients | North American adviser principally serves US clients | SFA principally serves clients subject to US federal income tax |
A branch is part of its bank; a subsidiary is a separate company. The booking centre and account contract determine which institution, supervisory rules and insolvency regime apply. Group membership alone does not make accounts legally interchangeable.
Minimum capital and fees
A minimum account balance, an adviser’s preferred mandate size and a minimum annual charge are different amounts. Published terms exist for specific services within these groups. They cannot be substituted for an offer from another group company or another programme.
Capital thresholds and fees vary by service and programme.
| Service | Capital threshold | Annual charge | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|
| EFG Americas | Generally USD 250 000 discretionary, varying by strategy; generally USD 1 million non-discretionary | Up to 1.50% / 1.20% | March 2026 adviser brochure; standard rates for new accounts from Q4 2025; additional costs possible |
| JSSAMNA wrap | USD 3 million preferred; smaller mandates possible | 1.60%; minimum CHF 8 000 quarterly | 18 March 2026 brochure; cash included; fees negotiable; exclusions and additional costs apply |
| Vontobel SFA | Generally USD 2 million; Managed Prime CHF 25 million | Managed Prime: maximum annual wrap fee 0.70–1.25% | 31 March 2026: strategy-dependent Prime range below CHF 35 million; FX, third-party and product costs can apply |
| Volt Invest | CHF 10 000 | 0.49%, excluding VAT | From 1 November 2025; instrument costs 0.17–0.71% extra (as of November 2025); external transaction costs excluded |
| VP Bank Switzerland | These figures are fee floors | Fund mandates CHF 2 000–4 000; classic CHF 9 000–14 000 minimum | January 2026 annual all-in tariff; VAT, product and third-party costs excluded |
These amounts concern different services and cannot be ranked as the total cost of a bank relationship.
EFG’s external-manager pricing permits portfolio-based brokerage/administration packages or separate charges. A manager’s own fee belongs to a separate relationship. Sarasin Luxembourg’s July 2026 conditions provide for a fee schedule supplied at account opening and an online Fee Information Document; they do not establish one tariff for the whole group.
The CHF 500 000–1 million range in commercial intermediary material has a different status. Goldblum describes segment-typical estimates; Mamytova gives that range for the three banks but CHF 1–3 million for Vontobel in its chart description. Such estimates are not contractual minimums or acceptance promises.
Pictet’s 2025 interview describes private-wealth clients with net worth of CHF 5 million or more; its 2022 interview describes Investment Office mandates from CHF 100 million. Net worth, assets entrusted to a bank and a specialised mandate minimum remain separate measures. Comparisons with Singapore private banking also require the same client category and service.
US clients and cross-border service
Vontobel SFA and J. Safra Sarasin Asset Management (North America) are both SEC-registered investment advisers, as shown by their respective register entries. The adviser brochures describe different client categories.
| Adviser | Principal client scope |
|---|---|
| Vontobel SFA | Clients subject to US federal income tax |
| JSSAMNA | US clients |
| EFG Americas | Generally non-US clients |
These client categories do not imply interchangeable US banking licences. The 18 March 2026 JSSAMNA brochure requires Bank J. Safra Sarasin Ltd in Basel to act as custodian for these wrap accounts.
SFA’s legal notice distinguishes its adviser and Swiss securities-firm status from US banking authorisation. US-person status depends on the relevant tax or regulatory rule. Registration does not guarantee onboarding, and the availability of an adviser does not mean every bank in its group accepts the same clients.
European Union
CRD VI introduces the Article 21c branch requirement from 11 January 2027 for specified third-country banking activities, including deposits, lending and guarantees. It contains qualifications for exclusive client initiative, interbank and intragroup activity, and MiFID investment services. Solicitation limits the initiative exception. The transition protects acquired rights under contracts entered before 11 July 2026; national implementation matters. It is not a blanket prohibition on every Swiss service to every EU resident.
Swiss sanctions
SECO’s nonbinding guidance of 30 June 2026 distinguishes Article 20’s restriction on accepting deposits from specified Russia-connected persons and entities when aggregate deposits at that bank exceed CHF 100 000 from asset freezing and separate reporting duties. It explains nationality/residence qualifications for Switzerland, the EEA and specified equivalent-status cases involving Monaco, Andorra, the UK and associated territories. In that guidance, securities custody is outside the deposit definition, while Article 23 addresses separate securities restrictions. These qualifications concern particular measures; they do not confer a right to an account or make overseas group entities exempt from applicable sanctions.
Asset protection and continuity
For qualifying deposits, Swiss protection is capped at CHF 100 000 per client and bank, aggregating accounts. FINMA distinguishes repayment from available liquidity, the deposit scheme for Swiss-booked deposits and bankruptcy privilege. A Swiss bank’s foreign branch can have privileged deposits without Swiss deposit-scheme cover. A separate overseas subsidiary has its own legal framework.
Custody segregation protects the return of qualifying client securities in insolvency, subject to applicable rights such as liens. It does not insure their market value. Cash deposits, bank-issued bonds and derivatives claims must not be treated as if all were segregated securities.
A change of banker, investment manager or account location affects different parts of the relationship. In EFG’s external-manager model, the client contracts separately with the bank and manager. The authority to manage assets, the custody agreement and continuity of contact therefore need separate treatment. Moving between group companies can require a new account and transfer arrangements; account closure and custody-transfer terms remain relevant throughout the relationship.
Other banking models
The Swiss market also includes institutions with different organisational structures. UBS’s 2025 report includes both Global Wealth Management and an Investment Bank; Julius Baer reported CHF 521 billion under management at the end of 2025. The Geneva private banks and Pictet have their own ownership and service models. Assets under management describe business scale and require consistent definitions; they do not establish an entry minimum or a service ranking.
An external asset manager changes the division of investment-management responsibilities while retaining a bank as custodian. It does not automatically lower the custodian’s acceptance threshold. Source of funds and wealth, residence and the intended investment service remain relevant to the actual relationship.
Q/A
Access and services
What capital is required for EFG, J. Safra Sarasin or Vontobel?
The applicable amount depends on the entity and service. Published adviser, digital-investment and mandate thresholds are specific to those products. Intermediary estimates are not an account offer; a minimum fee is not a minimum portfolio.
Can an account be held in Asia?
EFG and Sarasin have licensed banking establishments in Hong Kong and Singapore. Eligibility still depends on the branch and relationship. Vontobel’s cited Asian registrations concern other financial activities and do not establish an equivalent bank-account service.
Can a US person receive Swiss investment services?
SFA and JSSAMNA have specialist advisory services for defined US-related client categories. The adviser’s registration, client scope and custodian must be distinguished from a general banking licence or an unconditional right to open an account.
Institutions and protection
How do these groups compare with UBS, Julius Baer and the Geneva banks?
They have different ownership and service structures. UBS combines wealth management with investment banking; Julius Baer reports its own wealth-management scale; the Geneva institutions have their own governance arrangements. A size category does not determine the service or client eligibility.
What does the Gibraltar banking entity change?
Bank J. Safra Sarasin (Gibraltar) Ltd is a separate bank authorised to accept deposits. Its account contract and applicable protection framework are distinct from those of the Swiss bank. It is not merely a representative office.
What matters if an EFG CRO leaves?
The CRO’s coordinating role belongs within the bank’s controls. Continuity concerns the replacement contact, the investment mandate and any separate manager relationship. An individual banker’s authority should not be confused with the identity of the bank holding the assets.
Is protection identical across all locations in one group?
No. The bank or branch, account location and type of asset matter. Swiss deposit protection, bankruptcy privilege and securities segregation are separate mechanisms. A group brand does not extend the Swiss deposit scheme to every overseas company.