Cheap private banks

caldi9

Hello: Looking to use a private bank for the first time for FX conversions, access to certain private equity funds and just better service than a standard retail bank. Are there any private banks that don’t require to hold a high amount of assets with them? Thanks

DullGreyGuy

It somewhat depends on the bank on if they have a national or branch level set of requirements. Last time I spoke to Handelsbanken they were set at branch level and the central London requirement was big money to move across to them on signing up whereas the home counties branch I spoke to were also interested in younger high earners who dont have much in the way of assets now but strong potential for the future. 

I suspect other private banks have that branch level type approach

Marchitiello

This question has come up before over the years on these pages, and there has been a fair amount of discussion around it. OP other thread about “wealth managers” looks to be doubling up on this line of curiosity questioning.

First of all we need to differentiate between proper “Private” banks, and the “Private Bank” operations of the larger retail banks. Almost without exceptions, proper Private banks will require large assets (in the millions) and commitment to have them manage these assets on your behalf and at a fee. Recent cover on the press about Coutts minimum £3m balance are an indication of that (Although part of the NatWest group, Coutts has always been run as a separate and fairly independent private bank). Some of the other proper private bank in the UK have closed down or been absorbed over the last few years, but again I would not consider any of those to meet the “curiosity” of the OP.

Now, Retail Banks have often an increased level of account offer to match the wealth of their customers:

Premier : Min income £75k-£100k, very little benefits usually, some access to restricted products

Private: £250k - £2m min income  (as an example Lloyds starts at £250k for a slightly better service than other banks offer for Premier, but would really only offer you their full Private Banking service (called Mayfair) from £2m upwards).

Some of these banks also have or had a mid tier level like Barclays Wealth (£500k) or HSBC Jade (discontinued).

So, to answer the OP, unless you meet the above requirements, you would not have access to their service and even than, do not expect it to be cheap.

lr1277

This is not a recommendation but a suggestion for further investigation.
Cater Allen May fulfill some of your needs. When I last looked about 18 months ago:
You needed the equivalent of £5k per type of currency current account. They only offered sterling, euro and dollar current accounts.
You need to be introduced to them by a qualified professional eg solicitor, accountant or financial adviser.
The application form was long and required lots of information.
Their current account charges for a Sterling current account were comparable to a high street bank.

wmb194

caldi9 said:

Hello: Looking to use a private bank for the first time for FX conversions, access to certain private equity funds and just better service than a standard retail bank. Are there any private banks that don’t require to hold a high amount of assets with them? Thanks

You don't need a private bank to obtain good exchange rates.

caldi9

wmb194 said:

caldi9 said:

Hello: Looking to use a private bank for the first time for FX conversions, access to certain private equity funds and just better service than a standard retail bank. Are there any private banks that don’t require to hold a high amount of assets with them? Thanks

You don't need a private bank to obtain good exchange rates.

For larger transfers across bank accounts you do. 

wmb194

caldi9 said:

wmb194 said:

caldi9 said:

Hello: Looking to use a private bank for the first time for FX conversions, access to certain private equity funds and just better service than a standard retail bank. Are there any private banks that don’t require to hold a high amount of assets with them? Thanks

You don't need a private bank to obtain good exchange rates.

For larger transfers across bank accounts you do. 

Do you? What's your definition of, "larger"?

boingy

"Cheap private banking" is an oxymoron.
You need to be rich, and to be prepared to pay fees that normal people wouldn't pay.
The halfway house type of "private accounts" are pure vanity. No real benefit in them.

Marchitiello

lr1277 said:

This is not a recommendation but a suggestion for further investigation.
Cater Allen May fulfill some of your needs. When I last looked about 18 months ago:
You needed the equivalent of £5k per type of currency current account. They only offered sterling, euro and dollar current accounts.
You need to be introduced to them by a qualified professional eg solicitor, accountant or financial adviser.
The application form was long and required lots of information.
Their current account charges for a Sterling current account were comparable to a high street bank.

I have also investigated further the Cater Allen option in the last few years and the professional that needs to introduce you need to be one that is actually “registered” with them for that purpose and there are often tax advisory firms /wealth managers associate offices where lawyers, accountants and wealth managers works all under one roof.

I have also learned that, at least in 2018, their systems and procedures were a bit outdated and behind most of the competition… not sure why Santander still runs it as a separate entity to be honest.

gary1312

lr1277 said:

This is not a recommendation but a suggestion for further investigation.
Cater Allen May fulfill some of your needs. When I last looked about 18 months ago:
You needed the equivalent of £5k per type of currency current account. They only offered sterling, euro and dollar current accounts.
You need to be introduced to them by a qualified professional eg solicitor, accountant or financial adviser.
The application form was long and required lots of information.
Their current account charges for a Sterling current account were comparable to a high street bank.

I have a Cater Allen Sterling Account - unlike their Private Account there are no minimum income or balance requirements. You can also apply directly on their website, no need for an intermediary.

lr1277

Thanks to @Marchitiello and @gary1312 for those bits of information.