JERUSALEM, June 27 (Reuters) - The CEO and half a dozen others from Credit Suisse Israel have quit to form a new wealth management advisory business for Swiss private bank EFG International in Tel Aviv, two market sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Among those who have left Credit Suisse's Israel office to join EFG from September are Joseph Wolf, who took over as head of the business in April 2022, and head of private banking Michael Dadoun.
"There are people from the Credit Suisse Israel team who are now tasked with building a brand for EFG International," one of the sources said, adding that Wolf would run EFG's new wealth management advisory business in Israel.
Wolf, Dadoun and five others who resigned early in June declined to comment. Typically in banking there is a minimum three-month cooling off period for those moving to rival firms.
An EFG spokesperson said the bank "confirms that it is expanding its team in Israel" and that "further details will be provided in due time".
Credit Suisse said its clients and team members were informed of the Israeli personnel changes in early June, and that a dedicated team is maintaining client service.
Rival UBS earlier this month completed its emergency takeover of embattled Credit Suisse, forging a Swiss banking and wealth management giant with a $1.6 trillion balance sheet.
As a result of the merger, "there is overlap in certain regions (which) is more acute in Israel," said one source, while adding that no one from Credit Suisse in Israel had been laid off.
Another source said many banks have been actively recruiting Credit Suisse bankers globally for months.
UBS, which was not immediately available for comment, has an established wealth management and securities business in Israel.
At present, EFG has a one-person representative office in Tel Aviv that opened last September. (Reporting by Steven Scheer; Editing by Jan Harvey)
