The bank, founded in 1975, says it has one of the highest Tier 1 capital ratios – "shock absorber" capital – in the Alpine state.

Switzerland’s Compagnie Bancaire Helvétique (CBH) has appointed Simon Benhamou (pictured) as CEO, with immediate effect. He is taking over from Philippe Cordonier, who has retired.

Geneva-headquartered CBH, has also named Alfonso Liparulo as the new head of private banking. Liparulo has taken over from Benhamou, who had been wealth management head since 2018.

Benhamou, who joined CBH in 2009 as a wealth manager, eventually became head of Europe, Middle East and Africa. In 2014 he was appointed to join the bank's executive committee and became head of wealth management in 2018. He also led the family-owned group's digital transformation since 2019. 

In his new role, Benhamou will continue to be supported by two deputy CEOs, Julien Faure-Geors and Amos Poncini.

New private banking head
Before joining CBH, Liparulo held various management positions at Pictet & Cie for more than a decade. In 2015, he was appointed head of digital, in charge of business strategy and the implementation of a new organisational model. In 2019, he joined Mirabaud, where he was initially chief of staff wealth management before assuming commercial responsibility for the MENA, UK, Asia and Africa region.

Compagnie Bancaire Helvétique, whose board chairman is Sylvain Matthey, was founded in 1975. CBH has 309 professionals working in 10 locations around the world. At the end of 31 December 2023, CBH had SFr14.3 billion ($16.5 billion) in client assets, and a 43 per cent Tier 1 capital ratio, making it one of Switzerland’s most highly-capitalised banks, it said.