DiscoverYou Never Know with Nicole Lee#30 — Independent Asset Managers vs Banks: What's The Difference? | Urs Brutsch: “There's No Job Security In A Bank!” “I Work For the Client Now, Not The Bank.” “Investors Always Make The Same Mistakes!”
#30 — Independent Asset Managers vs Banks: What's The Difference? | Urs Brutsch: “There's No Job Security In A Bank!” “I Work For the Client Now, Not The Bank.” “Investors Always Make The Same Mistakes!”

#30 — Independent Asset Managers vs Banks: What's The Difference? | Urs Brutsch: “There's No Job Security In A Bank!” “I Work For the Client Now, Not The Bank.” “Investors Always Make The Same Mistakes!”

Update: 2025-10-10
Share

Description

Is there still job security in a bank? That's the question Urs Brutsch, Founder & CEO of HP Wealth Management, explores in this episode.


After decades leading private banking in Asia across Credit Suisse, ABN AMRO, and Clariden Leu, Urs left the banking world in 2009 to build his own firm — now one of the largest Independent Asset Managers in Singapore.


In this conversation, we unpack what exactly an Independent Asset Manager (IAM/EAM) is, how the model and relationship manager incentives differ from banks, and why honesty, transparency, and consistency are key to helping investors build and preserve their wealth.


We discuss fees, retrocessions, business challenges, and the biggest mistakes investors make — along with what it takes for relationship managers to truly work for their clients, not for the bank.


Plus, Urs shares his thoughts on Singapore’s rise as a global wealth hub vis-à-vis Hong Kong and Dubai, and the lessons football and leadership have taught him along the way.


This episode is a must-watch for career professionals, or anyone wanting to understand the financial industry, and to explore alternative business models outside of big banks. 


⏱️ Chapters

00:00 — Intro

01:00 — No such thing as job security in a bank

04:30 — Is the financial industry honest?

07:40 — What are Independent Asset Managers vs Banks?

10:20 — Relationship manager incentives: loyalty to banks or clients?

13:00 — Inside the compensation model of an IAM & EAM

16:00 — Why more bankers don’t make the leap to independence

19:40 — Retrocessions, transparency & doing what’s right for clients

23:00 — IAM vs Multi-Family Office: what’s the difference?

25:30 — Urs’ biggest lessons on starting HP Wealth Management

29:30 — You eat what you hunt: mindset shifts that must happen

32:40 — Biggest mistakes investors make

36:00 — How to invest in today’s environment

38:40 — Future of wealth: Singapore, Hong Kong & Dubai

41:00 — Advice for young bankers & future relationship managers

43:20 — Football, teamwork & leadership in life


—--------------

🔗 Connect with Urs Brutsch

🌐 Website: https://hpwm.sg 

👤 LinkedIn: https://sg.linkedin.com/in/ursbrutsch 


🔗 Connect with Nicole Lee

🌐 Website: www.youneverknow.co

👤 LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/nicoleleethisisme 

 📺 YouTube: www.youtube.com/@nicoleleethisisme 

 📲 Instagram/Tiktok: @nicoleleethisisme

Comments 
loading
In Channel
loading
00:00
00:00
1.0x

0.5x

0.8x

1.0x

1.25x

1.5x

2.0x

3.0x

Sleep Timer

Off

End of Episode

5 Minutes

10 Minutes

15 Minutes

30 Minutes

45 Minutes

60 Minutes

120 Minutes

#30 — Independent Asset Managers vs Banks: What's The Difference? | Urs Brutsch: “There's No Job Security In A Bank!” “I Work For the Client Now, Not The Bank.” “Investors Always Make The Same Mistakes!”

#30 — Independent Asset Managers vs Banks: What's The Difference? | Urs Brutsch: “There's No Job Security In A Bank!” “I Work For the Client Now, Not The Bank.” “Investors Always Make The Same Mistakes!”

Nicole Lee