Saxo Bank has finalised its friendly take-over of Synthesis Bank, and with the approval of the Swiss and Danish banking authorities, Synthesis has officially become Saxo Bank (Switzerland) SA headquartered in Geneva and with an office in Zürich.
The acquisition marks a new step in the rapid global expansion of Saxo Bank, the Danish online investment bank, a pioneer and global leader in the online investment market. Saxo Bank has more than 100 White Label Partners and customers in 177 countries.
Saxo Bank's two CEOs, Kim Fournais and Lars Christensen welcomed the event in a joint statement. "From being a close and highly esteemed partner, Synthesis is now officially part of Saxo Bank. We see enormous opportunity in this for our existing and new clients and have no doubts that this will enable us to bring even more competitive offerings and also expand our wealth management product range."
Soren Mose is the new CEO of Saxo Bank Switzerland. Coming from a job as the managing director of Jyske Bank's Swiss subsidiary in Zurich, Mose brings the experience and expertise that will help Saxo Bank Switzerland to take the already successful operation even further and take full advantage of the wealth management opportunities.
"With Syntheses as our closest partner in the past, the transition has been very smooth and the obvious synergies have all come into play," says Soren Mose. "The know-how of the teams at Synthesis is impressive. Their quality of service and delivery is unparalleled. Saxo Bank now stands ready to offer the benefits of a European bank on certain markets and the benefits of a Swiss bank on others."
Charles-Henri Sabet, the former CEO and the biggest shareholder of Synthesis, is now a member of Saxo Bank's senior management group and the chairman of the board of directors of Saxo Bank Switzerland. Sabet is in charge of the entire group's trading activities and sees big potential for some of Saxo Bank's products in the current market conditions.
"I'm not only delighted about this event, but also very pleased that we can offer our clients some of the products such as CFDs (Contracts for Difference)," says Charles-Henri Sabet. "With the experience of Saxo Bank's traders and account managers, we can help investors hedge some of their investments during the turmoil we have seen on the equities markets in recent times."
Saxo Bank plans to consolidate its position on the Swiss market which manages a significant share of the world's private wealth assets. With its new operation and the joint forces of old and new employees, Saxo Bank sees huge potential to expand its business and create new opportunities in those parts of the world that appreciate the combination of Saxo Bank's full product range with the special qualities of a Swiss bank.
Saxo Bank's acquisition of Synthesis was announced on 13 September 2007 with the approval from both Danish and Swiss authorities following on 4 December 2007.