Corner Bank Group

1. What is the core activity of your company? Does your company focus on particular geographic markets?

Founded in Lugano in 1952, the Cornèr Bank Group is an independent Swiss private bank group operating on the national market as a full-service bank. Lugano is Switzerland’s third-largest banking centre, after Zurich and Geneva. Active across the whole range of traditional banking services, the Cornèr Bank Group specialises in the Private Banking sector, as well as in the areas of lending, Visa, MasterCard and Diners Club payment cards (Cornèrcard) and online trading (CornèrTrader) – the core businesses on which the growth of the Cornèr Bank Group is based.

2011 brought a new acquisition to the Group: Zurich-based BonusCard.ch AG, a company engaged in the payment cards sector. 2012, on the contrary, was the year of the creation of CornèrTrader. This division offers private and institutional investors innovative multi-asset platforms for trading online. Through these platforms, investors can access the world’s financial markets and take advantage of personalised service and assistance from Account Executives specialised in this field.

Among the main innovations of 2015 was the direct issue of structured products on the Swiss market. This enabled the Cornèr Bank Group to join the Swiss Structured Products Association (SSPA), making it the Association’s first member bank from Ticino. Also in 2015, the acquisition of Diners Club Italia, in Milan, and the Slovenian Dinit d.o.o., the service company for the Diners Club  brand at the European level, extended the Group’s scope of action in the payment cards sector.
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The decision to keep the Head Office and Executive Board in Lugano reflects the Bank’s strong link with the local economy. Over the years, Cornèr Bank has opened offices in other leading Swiss financial centres and launched a vital process of internationalisation. The specific aim is to diversify and extend the Bank’s own range of products and services to keep pace with the increasing market globalisation and a more cosmopolitan clientele.

As regard to equity, the Cornèr Bank Group currently boasts an impressive capital ratio, with around three times the minimum statutory requirement. In terms of capital soundness, Cornèr Bank has been on the podium in Switzerland according to the world financial statistics compiled in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019 by “The Banker”. On June 2019, the bank has received a BBB+ from Fitch Ratings agency.

Cornèr Bank Group consists of the Lugano-based parent bank Cornèr Bank Ltd., the four Swiss branches in Chiasso, Geneva, Locarno and Zurich, the affiliated Cornèr Bank (Overseas) Limited,  BonusCard.ch Ltd., Cornercard UK Ltd., Diners Club Italia S.r.l. and Dinit d.o.o.​Since 2015,

2. In your view, what is the actual trend of your sector?

Today with all difficulties, Trump’s policy, european duties and finally the Coronavirus, the market is under pressure.

Already last year the trend was not positive and at the moment we can say that the market has a bearish trend.

Maybe the second part of the year should be better, but making prediction is always a hard exercise.

3. How do you judge the perspectives of your activity’s market?

Again the world is becoming more tricky and it is not evident to anticipate the future, especially during the last months, as explain before.

Nevertheless I think a market which is always in movement, can offer good opportunities.

What is important to say that Cornèr Bank is not comparable as big banks or banks who used to work in Trade Finance activities. For us this is a niche sector.

4. For your company, what are the benefits of working in Lugano (Switzerland)?

Lugano is part of Switzerland, a country who has a political stability, in the centre of Europe, with his “swiss label” well known all over the world.

Switzerland is also the country of many companies who are active in trade finance and raw materials activities.

Lugano is one of the big place in Switzerland for the trading of raw materials with Geneva and Zug.

So I think being near of companies is extremely important.

5. Your opinion in one sentence to describe LCTA’s activity

LCTA helps companies who want open a new reality in Ticino, gives the opportunities having a direct contact with the authority of the Canton.

LCTA offers to companies through his networking to know expert in many sectors like shipping, financing, and offers also high level trainings in different sectors.

Philippe Thürler, Trade Finance Specialist
Cornèr Banca SA // Cornèrcard // CornèrTrader

Foto © Fabrice Villard