Sergio Ermotti Quotes

Powerful Sergio Ermotti for Daily Growth

About Sergio Ermotti

**Sergio Ermotti**, born on September 18, 1963, in Lugano, Switzerland, is a renowned Swiss banker and author, known for his profound insights on finance, economics, and leadership. After completing his education at the University of St. Gallen with a degree in Business Administration, Ermotti embarked on a career that would take him to the highest echelons of global banking. His professional journey began at UBS in 1987, where he held various roles before being appointed as Group Chief Executive Officer and Group Chairman of the UBS Wealth Management business in 2011. Under his leadership, UBS became one of the world's largest wealth managers, significantly expanding its global footprint. In 2017, Ermotti left UBS to join Credit Suisse as Chief Executive Officer, where he led the bank through a period of restructuring and digital transformation. His tenure at Credit Suisse ended in 2020. Beyond his executive roles, Ermotti is also an accomplished author. His book, "The Tragedy of Financial Market Regulation: Why the Rules Do Not Work," published in 2015, offers a critical analysis of financial market regulation and its impact on economic stability. In his latest work, "The End of Banking as We Know It: The Digital Transformation of the Banking Industry," Ermotti explores the digital revolution's implications for banking and finance. Throughout his career, Ermotti has been recognized for his leadership and contributions to the financial industry. He is a regular speaker at global finance conferences and has received numerous awards, including the Swiss Banker of the Year award in 2015. Despite his many accomplishments, Ermotti remains humble, crediting his success to a strong team and a relentless pursuit of innovation.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"The future belongs to those who can balance short-term execution with long-term strategy."

This quote by Sergio Ermotti emphasizes the importance of finding a balance between immediate actions (short-term execution) and long-term planning (long-term strategy). It suggests that success in the future will be achieved by those individuals or organizations that can effectively manage both the urgent demands of the present and the strategic considerations of the future. This balance is crucial, as an overemphasis on either short-term gains or long-term vision can lead to inefficiencies or missed opportunities.


"Innovation is key to survival and success in a rapidly changing world."

This quote emphasizes that innovation, or the ability to introduce something new, is essential for organizations to adapt and thrive in an ever-evolving environment. As the pace of change accelerates, those who are agile and forward-thinking will have a competitive advantage over those who cling to outdated methods. Thus, embracing innovation becomes crucial not just for success, but also for survival in today's dynamic world.


"Risk management is not about saying no; it's about making the right decisions at the right time."

The quote emphasizes that risk management isn't just about avoiding risks, but rather, it's about making informed, strategic decisions with a clear understanding of potential risks and their implications. It suggests that effective risk management involves more than simply saying "no" to certain possibilities; instead, it requires weighing the pros and cons, assessing the level of risk involved, and choosing the best course of action at each given moment. In essence, this quote advocates for a proactive, strategic approach to decision-making that balances risk and reward effectively.


"Culture eats strategy for breakfast."

This quote emphasizes that even the best strategic plans can be undermined by a company's culture if it is not aligned with the objectives of those strategies. In other words, the values, beliefs, and behaviors that make up an organization's culture have a significant impact on its success, often more so than specific business strategies. A positive, productive culture fosters innovation, collaboration, and employee engagement, which can lead to better execution and ultimately, a stronger competitive position in the marketplace. Conversely, a toxic or unproductive culture can hinder progress, create obstacles, and prevent even the most well-thought-out strategies from achieving their full potential.


"Leadership is about inspiring people to perform at their best, even in challenging circumstances."

This quote highlights that effective leadership entails motivating individuals to achieve their highest potential amidst adversity or difficult situations. It underscores the crucial role of leaders in fostering an environment conducive for team members to excel, pushing beyond limits to deliver exceptional results. The essence lies in encouraging, supporting, and empowering people to reach their peak performance levels in challenging scenarios.


In 1987, Merrill Lynch asked me to open a Swiss capital markets operation. I was 27. In hindsight, I was lucky enough to start a business from scratch. And I mean from zero - no offices, even, just a space with walls between different areas. We decided to tear down the walls.

- Sergio Ermotti

Lucky, Hindsight, Capital, Different Areas

Businesses are among the first to see changes in the labor market, but few countries have the necessary close relationship between business and educators to ensure this information reaches the education system.

- Sergio Ermotti

Education, Necessary, Ensure, Close Relationship

Can a bank that is part of this society be sure that it has no bad apples? No, because, like in all other industries and companies, it's about people, and what you see is the reflection of the good and bad in society. So you employ people that you think are honest, but you have to manage them more and more with an eye towards missteps.

- Sergio Ermotti

Bad, Other, Employ, Manage

Wealth management businesses are capital light businesses.

- Sergio Ermotti

Wealth, Management, Capital, Businesses

Many businesses in an investment bank, not only at UBS, are structurally a loss leader, so they don't pay for the cost of capital.

- Sergio Ermotti

Leader, Cost, Capital, Businesses

We have a very competitive and profitable investment bank and strong asset management capabilities. We want to continue to build on all those businesses organically.

- Sergio Ermotti

Strong, Very, Capabilities, Businesses

Philanthropic funding can play a vital role in testing and stimulating innovation that, when proven, can be implemented at scale by business or government.

- Sergio Ermotti

Innovation, Play, Funding, Implemented

We don't really believe there's much room for the creation of new currencies if there is no real backing for a hard and credible issuer of that currency.

- Sergio Ermotti

Believe, New, Credible, Backing

We have to have a business model that can be a sustainable and acceptable one to both regulators and the other stakeholders, clients, and investors.

- Sergio Ermotti

Other, Clients, Acceptable, Stakeholders

If I have to tell you what was and is my mission, I think UBS can be the Apple or IBM of the banking industry: companies that went from being admired to severe difficulties and to being back stronger than before.

- Sergio Ermotti

Think, I Think, Admired, Severe

As a Swiss-Italian who has always worked for foreign banks, there was clearly an element of pride going back to my roots and working for the biggest bank in my country.

- Sergio Ermotti

Country, Always, Banks, Element

Growth is what solves most of the big economic and social problems: poverty, government deficits, quality of life, rising healthcare and retirement costs.

- Sergio Ermotti

Big, Rising, Costs, Social Problems

When you start to get shareholders, clients, employees, rating agencies, and everybody converging, and then your competitors bad-mouth you, you know you did the right thing.

- Sergio Ermotti

Start, Clients, Everybody, Employees

Everything is always feasible if you run a corporate finance exercise: you can always try to come out with a justification on how things could work. But the real issue is to say how do you translate that into practice.

- Sergio Ermotti

Practice, Always, Issue, Feasible

When you look at billionaires, many of them share one characteristic: They were not born billionaires.

- Sergio Ermotti

Born, Billionaires, Were, Characteristic

There's no understandable reason why the financial services industry has not developed a more comprehensive sharing of the value chain.

- Sergio Ermotti

Financial, Reason, Chain, Sharing

If we call ourselves the preeminent wealth management firm globally, then it would be impossible not to be a strong player in the biggest market in the world, the Americas.

- Sergio Ermotti

Strong, Wealth, Globally, Player

Today's investors want to see a positive impact on society and the environment as well as solid financial returns.

- Sergio Ermotti

Financial, Want, Solid, Returns

Usually, you measure appetite of investors by their ability or willingness to take a bit of leverage on their positions.

- Sergio Ermotti

Measure, Leverage, Take, Willingness

I don't think that the financial services industry and that banking in particular are any different than any other part of the economy, any other industry outside banking.

- Sergio Ermotti

Financial, Think, Other, Particular

I'm totally convinced that the battleground of banking is not the front office. The battleground is the back end.

- Sergio Ermotti

End, Back, Convinced, Banking

Every bank has to find its own DNA.

- Sergio Ermotti

Bank, Own, Find, DNA

Impact investment is an important business driver, and more importantly, it is a business driver because clients want it.

- Sergio Ermotti

Business, Important, Clients, Driver

People should never take things for granted.

- Sergio Ermotti

Never, Should, Take, Granted

While government clearly plays the major role in fighting poverty through policies on things such as education, tax, and trade, business creates the wealth that matters.

- Sergio Ermotti

Wealth, Through, Plays, Major Role

We believe existing currencies may move into becoming more of a crypto-currency.

- Sergio Ermotti

Becoming, May, Move, Existing

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