Naureen Hassan to Succeed Tom Naratil as UBS Americas President

Naureen Hassan will join UBS from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and succeed Tom Naratil as president of UBS Americas and CEO of UBS Americas Holding, while also becoming a member of UBS' group executive board on Oct. 3, the wirehouse said late Tuesday.

Meanwhile, as expected, Iqbal Khan will become the sole president of UBS' wealth management business, also effective Oct. 3. Since joining UBS in 2019, Khan has served as GWM co-president with Naratil.

The executive changes are happening as Naratil, following a 39-year career at UBS (and at PaineWebber, which was acquired by UBS in 2000), decided to step down from his current roles, the wirehouse announced.

The exact reason for Naratil's departure and his future plans were not clear on Wednesday and he didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

UBS had been considering a plan to promote Khan to be the sole GWM head, potentially setting him up as an eventual successor to CEO Ralph Hamers. But sources with knowledge of the deliberations told Bloomberg before the announcement that Naratil might be keeping his regional role as head of UBS' business in the Americas, no final decisions had been made, and the plans could still change.

Naratil has also served as a member of the UBS Group executive board for the past 11 years after holding various roles across the firm's divisions, functions and regions. He was named group CFO in 2011 and became group COO in 2014.

In 2016, Naratil became leader of the firm's Americas wealth management business and was named UBS Americas president. Two years later, he was named GWM co-president and, together with Khan, "strengthened the wealth management franchise," the company said Tuesday.

Under Naratil's leadership, GWM profit before tax in the Americas region more than doubled to $2 billion, according to UBS.

"Over the next few months, Tom will ensure a smooth transition of both his roles," UBS said.

Hassan, meanwhile, will be "responsible for driving client relationships, promoting cross-business collaboration, navigating the evolving public policy landscape, and ensuring sound regulatory and reputational risk governance," according to the wirehouse.

She will also lead the firm's strategic growth and digital initiatives in the Americas region, including the transformation of the firm's Wealth Management Americas platform, expansion of digitally customized banking services, implementation of the Wealthfront acquisition upon closure, and the rollout of UBS Circle One in the region.

Most recently, Hassan was first vice president and chief operating officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, where she also served as an alternate voting member of the Federal Open Market Committee.

Before joining the FRBNY, she was chief digital officer of Morgan Stanley Wealth Management, where she was responsible for its digital transformation.

Prior to Morgan Stanley, she was the executive vice president leading investor services strategy, segments and platforms at Charles Schwab and a member of its executive committee. She also held various business transformation, strategy and client experience leadership roles at Schwab, after starting her career at McKinsey & Co.

Meanwhile, Khan's "global network, background as a financial and regulatory auditor, risk management expertise, and his relentless focus on client outcomes and commercial impact make him the ideal person to lead GWM and will ensure a seamless continuation of our global growth strategy," UBS said.

Other Changes

As Khan takes sole leadership of GWM's next growth phase this fall, UBS will make some additional organizational changes, all effective Oct. 3, the firm disclosed in an internal memo seen by ThinkAdvisor.

Among those changes, Jason Chandler will continue to lead the UBS U.S. business, reporting to Khan, and will also report to Hassan when she joins in October as UBS Americas president.

Sylvia Coutinho will remain head of GWM in Latin America, reporting to Khan, while also remaining Brazil country head, reporting to Hassan, starting in October.

Also: Michael Blum, Banking Americas head, will report to Khan and Hassan; Steve Mattus, head of Advisory and Planning Products, will become co-head of investment management with Bruno Marxer, both reporting to Mark Haefele, UBS GWM chief investment officer; and Kate Newcomb, GWM co-COO GWM, will report to Khan.

Reporting lines for all others who now report to Khan or Chandler are unchanged, UBS said.

(Pictured: Naureen Hassan)