Demand from clients – and the ability to hire high-quality people – persuaded London-based Lord North Street to set up business in Geneva, co-founder William Drake told this publication a day after making the announcement.

While a perusal of media headlines might give the impression that wealth managers are exiting the Alpine state, the private investment office’s announcement that it has established an office in Switzerland is a sign that the country is still a big part of the market and likely to remain so.

The Lord North Street operation in Geneva will be run by Sonia de Luca and Fabio Blom. Investment research and other services will be provided from London by Lord North Street Limited. De Luca is a veteran of JP Morgan Private Bank (she also has many years of investment banking experience); Blum has worked at a family office and has experience at JP Morgan Private Bank and Credit Suisse.

"It [the Swiss office) is driven really by individuals; we have been thinking about this for quite a long time,” Drake told WealthBriefing in a telephone interview.

"Switzerland is the second major centre for international wealth in this time zone," he said, with the other IFC of that category being London.

Although the private investment office does not disclose assets under management exactly – they can be counted in billions of pounds – it has been around the market for quite a while; since 2000 it has promoted itself as one of the drivers of the PIO business model. (To see an interview with Drake, click here.)

"We were looking for like-minded people to represent us. Had we not found the right person we would not have gone ahead,” Drake, who is also a member of WealthBriefing’s editorial board, said.

Swiss wealth management is having to undergo large changes due to global pressure against the country’s centuries-old traditions of bank secrecy. According to Booz & Co, the US consultancy, disclosure agreements between Switzerland and the UK and Germany entered last year will see the Swiss financial sector losing around SFr47 billion (around $49.9 billion) in assets and a total of SFr1.1 billion in revenue. Offshore assets under management by the Swiss financial sector stood at SFr2.050 trillion at the end of 2010.

The old high-margin, low-maintenance business model is having to be replaced by one in which there is more focus on adding value. Meanwhile, recent Swiss regulatory rulings on issues such as fees are also driving change. (To see more on the latter issue, click here.)

"The advantage of setting up a new business is that you don't have the legacy of problems from an older world. The new Switzerland that will emerge will be a clean place that some people prefer to look for wealth management because of its historic links and expertise. On the other hand, it is going to be tough for those that do have legacy issues," said Drake.