More than 100 international speakers and attendees from top tier private banks, rising star boutique firms, and the most sophisticated single- and multi- family offices have been confirmed for ***Private Banking World 2009*** which takes place February 23 to 26, 2009 at The Atlantis on Paradise Island.
Wendy Warren, CEO & Executive Director of the Bahamas Financial Services Board (BFSB), title sponsors of the event, notes that, *“the conference has been sponsored as a way to bring international gatekeepers to our shores, to best experience The Bahamas.”* In this connection, ***Private Banking World*** follows in the path of the successful Bahamas Briefing programme, hosted by BFSB annually to invite sponsored international intermediaries to exchange information and network here in The Bahamas.
Ms. Warren continues,* “Business referrals, references and relationships are significantly increased when we host international business drivers here and they interact with all levels of the Government, Regulators and the Private Sector”.*
This conference presents an ideal opportunity to expand and reinforce business networks and to demonstrate the strength of the Bahamian financial services community. Jan Mezulanik, Chairman of the Association of International Banks & Trust Companies (AIBT), also title sponsors of the conference, calls on all bankers, trust professionals, asset managers and professional service providers to take advantage of professional development and networking opportunities presented over the four days of ***Private Banking World Bahamas***.
The Conference comes at a particularly opportune time as consolidation and nationalisation hit the world’s largest banks, and uncertainty of when the credit markets will reopen is forcing a shift of power in the wealth management and private banking industries. At the same time, high net worth individuals and family offices are not only worried about how much they have, they must also now worry about where their assets are located.
Keynote presentations will be given by Ian Fair, Deputy Chairman, Butterfield Bank, Bahamas; Andrew Mehalko, CIO, GenSpring Family Offices, U.S.; Gerard Aquilina, Vice Chairman, Barclay’s Wealth, UK; and Charles Lowenhaupt, CEO, Lowenhaupt Global Advisors, U.S.
Some of the other presentations and speakers include:
• Dr. Steen Ehlern, Managing Director, Ferguson Partners Family Office, Switzerland; Carol Pepper, CEO & Founder, Pepper International, U.S.; Michael Cole, Executive VP and National Director, Wells Fargo Family Wealth Group U.S.; and Juan Constantino Martínez B., PREBEL,U.S. will be part of a panel discussion on **The Rise of Boutiques and MFOs, and the Changing Face of Large Institutions**;
• Stephen McCarthy, Senior Vice President, KCG Capital, U.S.; Steve Braverman, President, Harris my CFO, U.S. and Bruce Weatherhill, CEO, Bruce Weatherhill Executive Consulting, UK will have a panel discussion on **The Art of Advice and Building Trust**;
• Gregor Bienz, CEO & Head of Private Banking, Bank Frey & Co. AG, Switzerland, and Sam Luft, Executive Vice President, Head of Investment Management, Credit Agricole Suisse (Bahamas) Ltd., Bahamas will discuss **Absolute or Relative Performance: Constructing an Asset Allocation Strategy to Fit Your Clients’ Risk Tolerance**;
• Phillippe Damas, CEO, ING Private Bank, Singapore and Samantha Lim, Head-Private Banking Segment, Kuwait Finance House (Malaysia) Berhad, will be part of a panel discussion on **Opportunities for Successful Expansion Into Asia**;
• Dr. Vladislav Mudrych, Head of Eastern Europe, Hypo Investment Bank, Liechtenstein will discuss how to **Profit from the Explosive Growth in Russia and Eastern Europe**; and
• Jamie Carvallo, Partner, Park Sutton Advisors and Dan Wright, SVP & head of International Wealth, Scotiabank, Canada will discuss** Latin America and the Caribbean**.
Other Speakers from The Bahamas include **Benno Raeber**, Principal, Prime Advisory Group; **Hillary Deveaux**, Executive Director, Securities Commission of The Bahamas; **James Smith**, former Governor, Central Bank of the Bahamas; **Gilles Schanen**, CEO, Pasche Bank & Trust Ltd.; **Sam Luft**, Executive Vice President, Credit Agricole Suisse (Bahamas) Ltd.; **Wendy Warren**, CEO & Executive Director, BFSB; **Julien Martel**, VP & Head of Private Banking, Butterfield Bank (Bahamas) Ltd.; and **Adrian Crosbie-Jones**, Managing Director, The Private Trust Corporation Limited.
BFSB & AIBT have been able to secure pricing discounts for members, starting at $995. For further information regarding the conference or for registration contact BFSB. *(see link below)*