The UBS Question: Staying Swiss or Changing Headquarters to the US?

UBS is a Swiss multinational investment bank and financial services company. It is considering relocating its headquarters to the United States as a contingency plan if Swiss authorities enforce new capital requirements. 

The bank’s chair, Colm Kelleher, has held private talks with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent about the potential move, highlighting the lender’s strategic options amid regulatory uncertainty.

The Swiss banking giant is considering relocating its headquarters to the United States amid proposed Swiss capital requirements that could limit its growth.

Such a move could reshape the bank’s regulatory environment, expand its access to Wall Street, and strengthen its resilience against future financial shocks.

Credit Suisse

After acquiring its failing rival Credit Suisse in a government-orchestrated rescue in 2023, UBS became even more central to global finance. 

Credit Suisse was once a major global bank, but after years of scandals and financial instability, it collapsed and was taken over by UBS to protect the global financial system.

UBS’s acquisition of the failed Credit Suisse in 2023 underscored the risks of operating without adequate safeguards. 

To avoid a repeat, UBS is focused on strengthening its capital reserves, tightening risk management, and diversifying its operations across global markets. 

Relocating its headquarters to the US could support these goals by offering a more flexible regulatory environment, lighter capital requirements, and closer access to Wall Street’s funding and markets. In this way, a move would not just be strategic for growth—it would also help UBS protect itself from future crises and ensure long-term stability.

UBS Business Model

UBS’ current business model is built around four divisions: high-margin global wealth management, a more volatile investment bank, institutional asset management, and domestic retail and corporate banking. 

This structure provides diversification and stable revenue from wealthy clients, but also exposes the bank to market swings, heavy capital requirements, and concentration risks within Switzerland. 

Relocating to the US could offer regulatory flexibility and new growth opportunities in North America, particularly for investment banking and wealth management. 

However, the move would also bring operational complexity and potential reputational risks tied to UBS’s Swiss heritage, as UBS is one of the world’s most influential and historically significant banks, originating from the 1998 merger of Union Bank of Switzerland and Swiss Bank Corporation, with roots dating back to the 19th century. 

It has built its reputation on Swiss wealth management, global investment banking, and a strong domestic corporate banking presence. 

Finances

The bank is now weighing whether to relocate its headquarters away from Switzerland—potentially to the United States—due to new Swiss proposals that would require UBS to hold an additional $26 billion in capital. 

The US has openly questioned whether lenders are "too tightly constrained", suggesting capital and liquidity requirements may be eased to stimulate credit and economic activity.

Capital requirements are rules that specify the amount of money a bank must hold in reserve to meet its obligations. 

Liquidity requirements refer to the rules governing a bank's ability to access cash quickly to meet its short-term obligations.

For UBS, this shift could translate into greater balance-sheet flexibility, improved lending capacity, and a more competitive cost of capital relative to global peers.

The US government has also indicated a willingness to attract major European financial institutions, and discussions between UBS chair Colm Kelleher and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggest political openness to a redomiciling. 

Regarding redomiciling, it refers to the process by which a company legally changes its country of incorporation or headquarters, effectively shifting its official domicile from one jurisdiction to another. 

For a multinational bank like UBS, this would mean that while its global operations continue largely as before, the bank would now be governed primarily by U.S. laws, regulations, and tax codes rather than Swiss ones. 

Redomiciling can offer strategic advantages, such as access to a different regulatory environment, potential tax benefits, or closer proximity to key markets—here, the U.S. financial system and Wall Street. 

However, it is also a complex process involving legal, regulatory, and shareholder approvals, as well as logistical challenges in aligning corporate governance, reporting standards, and operational structures to the new jurisdiction.

Trump’s Administration

Under the Trump administration, policies can influence the level of strictness or leniency in financial regulations.

UBS maintains that it prefers to remain in Switzerland, but executives say they have a fiduciary duty to examine all options. 

A legal and ethical obligation to act in the best interest of shareholders or clients. For UBS executives, this means considering all possible options to protect the bank and its investors, even if that includes relocating the bank's operations.

In terms of acting as a negotiating tool, by showing that relocation is possible, UBS can pressure the Swiss government to change or soften proposed regulations, which can be advantageous, considering that Swiss policymakers are pushing for sharply higher capital requirements. 

The Trump administration aimed to reduce regulations in the financial sector, creating the possibility that large global banks could operate with fewer restrictions and greater freedom.

Moreover, deregulation in various parts of the economy boosts growth and encourages businesses to expand their operations in the country.

In this context, it means the administration sought to loosen regulations on banks and other sectors of the economy that involve money, banking, investments, insurance, and other financial services.

Wall Street

One of the key advantages of relocating UBS’ headquarters to the United States would be proximity to Wall Street, the epicentre of global finance. 

Wall Street is home to major stock exchanges, including the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq, as well as numerous investment banks, hedge funds, and private equity firms. 

Being headquartered in this financial hub would allow UBS to interact more directly with key market participants, gain faster access to capital markets, and respond quickly to trading opportunities or market shifts.

It would also strengthen relationships with institutional investors, corporate clients, and regulators, creating potential for expanded deal flow, mergers and acquisitions, and investment banking business. 

Moreover, physical presence in the US could enhance UBS’s credibility with American clients and investors, who often prefer working with banks that are embedded in their own financial ecosystem.

Final thoughts

Relocating to the US would offer UBS strategic advantages, including lighter capital requirements and closer proximity to Wall Street, as well as a regulatory climate more conducive to global growth. 

Yet the move carries significant operational, political, and reputational risks tied to its Swiss identity. 

For UBS, the decision is more than a matter of geography—it is a delicate balancing act between preserving its heritage and securing long-term competitiveness in the global finance world.