After the takeover of Credit Suisse, and following its recent reorganisation, UBS has increased its presence as a wealth manager in the Middle East where it has been active for 60 years.

Zurich-headquartered UBS Global Wealth Management has bolstered its teams with three new hires this week and updated its regional organisation to meet clients’ needs as the integration with Credit Suisse progresses, it said in a statement.

Bassel Al Zaouk has recently joined from Deutsche Bank, where he was CEO and chief country officer for the bank’s franchise in Saudi Arabia. Based in Riyadh, Al Zaouk will build out the domestic wealth management business in Saudi Arabia.

Ali Khunji will be responsible for growing the wealth management business in Bahrain and the Eastern Province. Subject to regulatory approval, Khunji will assume the role as co-location head Bahrain together with Khaled Salah. Khunji previously headed the wealth and personal banking business in Bahrain for HSBC.

Meanwhile, Rana Al Emam will be responsible for growing the business in Abu Dhabi, starting in July. El Emam was also at HSBC, where she was head of private banking in Abu Dhabi.

Al Zaouk and Khunji will report to Niels Zilkens, head of wealth management Middle East, and Al Emam will report to Georges El Khoury, location head Dubai. Joining Khunji are three colleagues from Deutsche Bank, the firm said. Khunji and Al Emam are also each joined by two colleagues from HSBC.

“Their strong professional background and local expertise will further empower our presence in the Middle East and I have no doubt that together, we are now best positioned to accelerate our growth strategy and achieve the ambitious goals we have set for ourselves,” Zilkens said.

With the acquisition of Credit Suisse, UBS now manages $5.8 trillion of invested assets as per first quarter 2024.