UBS denies report that it may want to unload its U.S. wealth management group

UBS Group AG is once again denying that its U.S. wealth management unit may be up for sale. The New York Post reported Saturday that the Zurich-based bank could soon sell its American wealth management business. UBS announced earlier this month that it's restructuring the unit. UBS Wealth Management Americas is not for sale, Gregg Rosenberg, a spokesman for the firm in New York, said Monday. “Our wealth management franchise is at the core of our strategy and we are uniquely positioned in the U.S. to succeed,” he said, adding that the unit makes up more than half of the invested assets in its global wealth management business and continues to have "the most productive adviser force in the industry in the largest market in the world." UBS Wealth Management Americas, which focuses on ultra-high-net-worth and high-net-worth clients, had $1.05 trillion of invested assets at the end of the first quarter and 7,145 financial advisers. Its advisers produced an average $1.06 million of annualized revenue each in the first quarter, according to Mr. Rosenberg. Rumors that the business is up for sale have been popping up since 2010, according to Ron Edde, president and CEO of recruitment firm Millennium Career Advisors. He said it would be a lot less expensive for a firm to pick up its advisers with an acquisition rather than recruit them individually. Mr. Edde also called UBS Wealth Management's restructuring plans “ballsy.” The plan includes cutting recruitment by 40% while boosting compensation for advisers with the largest books of business. Last summer, UBS' CEO Sergio Ermotti also tried to squash the notion that the bank would be willing to give up the unit. “It's not so hard to see why this strong business with its strategic and financial importance looks attractive to our competitors, but it's worth even more to UBS and its shareholders, and that's why it's not for sale,” Mr. Ermotti said during a July 2015 earnings call. He reminded investors and analysts that “almost every dollar we earn in pre-tax profit across our businesses in the U.S. is available to distribute to shareholders.”