UBS CEO Sergio Ermotti said on Wednesday that the Swiss bank “cannot rule out” an acquisition as it looks to grow its business in the Americas, opening the door to deal-making even as tougher capital rules at home threaten to raise the cost of overseas expansion.
Speaking at a conference in St. Gallen, Switzerland, Ermotti said the bank may pursue a deal to accelerate its US push, according to Bloomberg. “We may want to do an acquisition. I don’t know about any big organizations that can rule out acquisitions,” he said, while adding that UBS does not necessarily need a deal to achieve its expansion goals.
US Banking License Paves the Way
The remarks come weeks after UBS secured a national banking charter from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency in March, converting its US subsidiary from a state-chartered industrial bank. The license allows UBS to offer a broader range of services — including checking and savings accounts — to wealthy American clients, moving beyond its traditional ultra-high-net-worth base. A new banking platform is expected to roll out in the second half of 2027, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Rob Karofsky, UBS’s president for the Americas, said at the time that the charter “will enhance our progress in the U.S. and solidify our goal to be a leading global wealth manager”. Brian Carlin, UBS’s US CEO, added that the bank would now “go head-to-head with everyday banking”.
Swiss Capital Rules Cloud the Outlook
Ermotti’s expansion ambitions are complicated by Switzerland’s proposed regulatory overhaul, which could require UBS to hold an additional $22 billion in core capital to back its foreign subsidiaries — on top of $15 billion already required as a result of its 2023 emergency takeover of Credit Suisse. The Swiss Federal Council published the final version of its capital adequacy ordinance in late April, and a separate proposal requiring full deduction of foreign participations from UBS’s domestic capital is now before parliament.
UBS has called the proposed package “extreme” and lacking international alignment. A study by Swiss research institute BAK Economics estimated the rules could cost Switzerland up to 34 billion Swiss francs in cumulative GDP losses over a decade.
Despite the regulatory headwinds, Ermotti — whose tenure as CEO may now extend well into the second half of 2027, according to Reuters — has signaled that retreat is not on the table. UBS maintains its 2026 financial targets and capital return plans.
