Global wealth Management market heats up

As the world economy gradually improves, the wealth management market is also beginning to recover on a global scale.　　Some analysis points out that in the coming period, the main growth point of wealth management will be transferred from mature markets such as Europe and America to emerging market countries. Wealth management, that is, financial institutions for high net worth customers to provide personalized financial services, in order to achieve the preservation, create wealth and so on. Wealth management includes savings and debt management, investment and risk management, legal and tax advisory services, retirement schemes, and heritage arrangements. This business has prevailed in Europe and America for many years. It has also begun to flourish in many emerging markets in recent years and has become a representative service for private banking.　　A growing number of large financial institutions have dedicated wealth management teams to meet the personalized needs of high net worth customers. In the past, high net worth customers have been choosing real estate as a major investment model. However, the international financial crisis led to a slump in property prices, allowing many investors to start looking for a richer and more diversified investment model.　　It also provides a favorable development opportunity for the wealth management market. A number of international financial institutions surveyed reported a growth rate of 15% per cent in the region's wealth management market compared with the growth rate of 2% to 4% per cent in most developed countries. The trend has made the region the first choice for major banks to expand their wealth management business, and many have been or are planning to expand their wealth management operations in the region. Barclays has set up branches in Saudi Arabia to operate investment finance and wealth management operations to meet the needs of local high-end businesses and individual customers. RBS's private bank Coutts also announced plans to vigorously develop wealth management operations in the Middle East. In addition, many Gulf financial institutions, including the Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, are also working on their wealth management business.　　In an environment where financial institutions are very cautious about business risks, the interest and attention paid to the Middle East region reflect the broad prospects of wealth management market in the region. There is no uniform standard among financial institutions for the definition of high net worth clients. The Islamic Bank of Abu Dhabi defines a customer with a net asset of more than 1 million dollars as a high net worth customer. According to this standard, the UAE alone has more than 55,000 high net worth customers, the total assets of more than 190 billion U.S. dollars. There are also financial institutions who believe that customers with more than 1 million dollars of disposable assets, other than the individual's residential property, are high net worth customers. As one of the world's leading financial management and consultancy firms, the 2010 World Wealth Report, issued by Merrill Lynch, shows that around 10 million people, 400,000 of whom live in the Middle East in 2009, are the world's top net worth clients. Saudi Arabia, the largest economy in the Middle East, has more than 100,000 high net worth customers. In addition, the Middle East is the most concentrated region in the world for super-equity customers with assets above tens of millions of dollars.　　This customer base is the real focus of major banks in the area of wealth management. Findings on asset allocationshow that while the global economy is showing signs of recovery and growth, the confidence of high net worth customers is still affected by the international financial crisis, more cautious about investment risk, more inclined to return to reliable and durable investment, and therefore more willing to choose fixed income investment vehicles. This requires wealth management companies to fully understand customer needs and behavior characteristics, and on this basis to put forward a comprehensive professional advice and financial solutions. In addition, as more and more financial institutions in the emerging markets to carry out wealth management business and customer demand for personalized services, the wealth management industry in the boom and development will also face very fierce competition and challenges.