Swiss banking giant UBS AG (UBS), Friday named Chief Risk Officer Philip Lofts as the new chief executive officer of its businesses in Americas, with an aim to strengthen its position in the US, Canada and Latin America.
The Zurich-based bank also noted that Maureen Miskovic will succeed Lofts as the Group Chief Risk Officer.
UBS also said it has decided to separate the role of CEO and Chairman to give prime importance to Americas business. All appointments will be effective January 1, 2011.
Robert Wolf will remain as Chairman of UBS Group Americas and President of Investment Bank. Wolf will concentrate on client relationships and business transactions full-time in the Americas.
Oswald Grübel, Group Chief Executive Officer said, "Given the importance of the Americas region, which has the largest concentration of UBS employees and is the world's largest wealth management market and investment banking fee pool, we decided to broaden our senior leadership team to provide the momentum necessary to develop key areas in the United States, Canada and Latin America."
UBS had lost billions of dollars on investments in toxic mortgages last year and had also lost its position as the world largest wealth manager to Bank of America. The bank was also forced to seek a bailout to get out of the crisis. Bank of America overtook UBS with the purchase of Merril Lynch, bringing its total worth to $1.5 trillion.
Lofts was appointed the Group Chief Risk Officer of the bank in November 2008. In his current role, Lofts will work towards achieving a sustainable growth in the region.
Miskovic, most recently, was the chief risk officer of State Street Corp. She had served as a member of the State Street Board of Directors and also held a number of senior positions with major financial institutions, previously.
UBS is currently trading at $17.84, down $0.26 or 1.44%, on a volume of 1.71 million shares.
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