Julius Bär

Julius Bär survived 133 years in private banking by targeting ultra-high-net-worth clients that competitors underserve: entrepreneurs, family offices, and emerging market wealth. Founded in 1890, the bank manages $480B+ in client assets with minimums typically $5M-10M, avoiding mass affluent competition while staying below the $100M+ thresholds where investment banks dominate. This positioning exploits a niche: clients wealthy enough to need sophisticated tax, estate, and investment services but not large enough to command institutional attention. Julius Bär's 1.5%+ revenue margins (vs. 0.1-0.3% for retail banking) prove that in wealth management, selectivity creates pricing power - fewer, richer clients generate higher margins than volume strategies.