UBS gives wealthy clients Goldman, Pimco strategies at no extra cost

UBS Group is giving wealthy clients the option to invest in separately managed accounts using equity and fixed-income strategies run by outside managers without charging additional fees.

Rich customers can have access to firms including Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s asset management unit, Pacific Investment Management Co. and Invesco Ltd., UBS said Tuesday in a statement. So-called separately managed accounts drove $9 billion of flows into the Swiss bank’s asset-management arm in the first quarter.

“We’re simplifying SMA pricing, expanding client choice and transparency,” Jason Chandler, the bank’s head of wealth management in the U.S., said in an interview. “This is a huge win for our clients and advisers.”

UBS’s financial advisers will be able to offer strategies from GSAM, Natixis SA, and Breckinridge Capital Advisors from July 7. Offerings from Pimco, Invesco, Brandes Investment Partners and Franklin Templeton will be available in August.

“What clients are looking for is lower management fees, but what we’re finding is that they’re willing to pay for advice and premium services,” said Steve Mattus, UBS’s head of Americas advisory and planning products. “Market volatility makes the value of those services higher.”

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