UBS Group AG
Company History
UBS History: Founding, Growth & Key Milestones
Founded 1998 in Basel and Zurich, Switzerland
When was UBS founded?
UBS was founded in 1998 in Basel and Zurich, Switzerland by Marcel Ospel, making it 28 years old.
- Founded
- 1998
- Founding place
- Basel and Zurich, Switzerland
- Founders
- Marcel Ospel
- Headquarters today
- Zurich and Basel, Switzerland
- Milestones documented
- 12 (1862–2025)
- Current CEO
- Sergio Ermotti
- Acquisitions
- 3
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1862 | Union Bank predecessor founded |
| 1862 | Founded |
| 1912 | Merger |
| 1998 | Modern UBS formed |
| 1998 | SBC Merger |
| 2000 | PaineWebber acquired |
| 2008 | Financial Crisis |
| 2011 | Rogue Trading Loss |
| 2023 | Credit Suisse acquisition announced |
| 2023 | Credit Suisse Acquisition |
| 2024 | Integration |
| 2025 | Invested assets exceed $7T |
- Where was UBS founded?
- UBS was founded in Basel and Zurich, Switzerland in 1998.
- Who founded UBS?
- UBS was founded by Marcel Ospel.
- When did UBS start?
- UBS was founded in 1998.
- How old is UBS?
- UBS is 28 years old as of 2026.
Founding Story
Modern UBS was created in 1998 when Union Bank of Switzerland and Swiss Bank Corporation merged, joining two lineages that date back to the nineteenth century (Bank in Winterthur in 1862 and Basler Bankverein in 1872). The merger aimed to give a Swiss bank the scale to compete globally in wealth management, asset management and investment banking. In 2000 UBS bought US brokerage PaineWebber, laying the base for its large American wealth business.
Founders
Marcel Ospel
Marcel Ospel (1950-2020) was the Swiss banker who led Swiss Bank Corporation into its 1998 merger with Union Bank of Switzerland, creating UBS. He served as group CEO and later chairman, building a large investment bank alongside the wealth business. He resigned as chairman in 2008 after UBS suffered heavy losses on US subprime securities. Marcel Louis Ospel was born on February 8, 1950 and died on April 26, 2020. He was a Swiss investment banker. (Exact birth year remains publicly undisclosed).
Key Milestones
Union Bank predecessor founded
UBS traces part of its lineage to Swiss banking predecessors founded in the nineteenth century.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgModern UBS formed
Union Bank of Switzerland and Swiss Bank Corporation merged to create UBS.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgPaineWebber acquired
UBS expanded its U.S. wealth management platform through the PaineWebber acquisition.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgRogue Trading Loss
UBS disclosed in September 2011 a loss of about $2.3 billion from unauthorised trading in London, and chief executive Oswald Gruebel resigned.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgCredit Suisse acquisition announced
UBS agreed to acquire Credit Suisse in an emergency transaction brokered by Swiss authorities.
Source: ubs.comInvested assets exceed $7T
UBS Group invested assets rose above USD 7 trillion in 2025.
Source: ubs.comMajor Acquisitions
PaineWebber
2000Build a large US wealth management business.
Credit Suisse
2023Government-brokered rescue of its failing Swiss rival, agreed in March 2023 for about $3.6 billion (CHF 3 billion) in shares.
S. G. Warburg
1995Swiss Bank Corporation, one of the two banks that formed UBS, bought the London merchant bank S. G. Warburg in 1995.
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UBS Company History FAQ
When, where, and how was UBS originally founded?
UBS traces its roots to 1862 with the founding of Bank in Winterthur, and 1872 with Basler Bankverein (later Swiss Bank Corporation) in Basel. The modern entity was established in June 1998 through the merger of Union Bank of Switzerland and Swiss Bank Corporation.
What was the significance of the 1998 merger of Union Bank of Switzerland and Swiss Bank Corporation?
Engineered by Swiss Bank Corporation CEO Marcel Ospel, the $25 billion "merger of equals" created the second-largest bank in the world at the time, adopting the name UBS and creating a global private banking powerhouse.
How did UBS expand into American wealth management in 2000?
In November 2000, UBS acquired prominent US brokerage firm PaineWebber for $10.8 billion, gaining access to over 2 million affluent American clients and thousands of US financial advisors.
How did the 2008 global financial crisis impact UBS?
UBS suffered catastrophic losses of over $50 billion on US subprime residential mortgages, forcing the Swiss Federal Council and Swiss National Bank (SNB) to inject CHF 6 billion in equity and transfer $38.7 billion in toxic assets to a central bank stabilization fund.
What was the 2011 rogue trader scandal that shook UBS?
In September 2011, London-based trader Kweku Adoboli lost $2.3 billion in unauthorized speculative trades on the Delta One desk, leading to the immediate resignation of Group CEO Oswald Grübel.
How did Sergio Ermotti transform UBS during his first tenure as CEO (2011–2020)?
Sergio Ermotti executed a radical strategic pivot: he drastically shrank the capital-intensive fixed-income investment bank, slashed risk-weighted assets, and refocused UBS on capital-light Global Wealth Management, generating steady high-return dividends.
What precipitated the emergency acquisition of Credit Suisse on March 19, 2023?
Following years of scandals (Archegos, Greensill) and catastrophic deposit runs in March 2023, the Swiss government, FINMA, and the Swiss National Bank brokered an emergency weekend takeover where UBS acquired rival Credit Suisse for CHF 3 billion ($3.25B USD).
Why was Sergio Ermotti recalled as CEO in March 2023?
UBS Chairman Colm Kelleher and the board recalled Sergio Ermotti to replace Ralph Hamers within days of the Credit Suisse deal, recognizing that Ermotti's stature, Swiss political trust, and restructuring pedigree were essential to execute the largest bank integration in modern history.
What was the controversial write-down of Credit Suisse's AT1 bonds?
As part of the Swiss government's rescue terms, regulatory authority FINMA ordered the complete write-down of CHF 16 billion ($17.3 billion) in Credit Suisse Additional Tier 1 (AT1) contingent convertible bonds to zero, sparking extensive global investor lawsuits.
When did UBS terminate the Swiss government loss-protection guarantees?
In August 2023, UBS voluntarily terminated the CHF 9 billion public loss-protection agreement and CHF 100 billion liquidity backstop from the Swiss government without costing taxpayers a single franc, demonstrating internal balance sheet strength.
When did the formal legal entity merger of UBS AG and Credit Suisse AG complete?
On May 31, 2024, UBS completed the legal merger of UBS AG and Credit Suisse AG, retiring Credit Suisse as an independent corporate entity and beginning the multi-year migration of client accounts.
How large is UBS today in terms of invested assets and global ranking?
UBS is the world's undisputed largest wealth manager, overseeing more than $7.3 trillion in total invested assets, employing roughly 100,000 professionals, and serving over half of the world's billionaires.
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