Banking sector ( PESTLE and SWOT analysis) Essay

Banking sector ( PESTLE and SWOT analysis) - Essay Example The bank has integrated its investment banking, wealth management and asset management services with the Swiss operations to provide high quality financial solutions (UBS-a, 2011). The bank is relatively new. It came into existence in 1998 with the merger of Swiss Bank Corporation and Union Bank of Switzerland. Today the bank has grown as a global firm with a strong market position in Europe, US and Asia and a higher employee base in US than Switzerland, despite a dominant presence in the Swiss retail market. Most of the growth achieved has been through the M&A (mergers and acquisitions) deals. PESTLE Analysis of UBS The PESTLE analysis of the banking sector examines the various factors that affect the industry thereby impacting the companies operating in the industry. PESTLE is an acronym of political, economic, social, technological, legal, and environment analysis. The factors relating to economy include interest rates, economic growth, rate of inflation and exchange rates. The so cial factors include changes in buying patterns, culture, changes in consumer preferences etc. Technological factors include R&D, advancement in technology, innovation, new inventions etc. The legal factors include the legal framework of the country i.e. whether the legal environment in a country is conducive to conducting business activity, the banking rules and regulations in the country whether it is stringent or liberal etc. The environmental factors generally do not have any influence on the performance of the banking sector. Political- The political condition in Switzerland is quite stable. In fact some economists assigned the political stability of the country as an important factor that propelled the country’s economic success. The political system of the country is very effective as is evident from the high authoritative powers granted to the county and state governments. As compared to the Federal government the state level offices are in a position to react more ef ficiently and are equipped with better decision making power. The success of the banking sector in the area of asset management is owing to a traditionally stable political condition, reliability and high efficiency of banks and the overall good performance of the investments (Swiss Bankers Association, 2004). A stable political environment is conducive for the operations of the banks. Economic- The country enjoys the status of tax haven that makes it an attractive destination for making investments. Switzerland is renowned as the most prosperous and advanced countries in the world. The per-capita income of Switzerland is one of the highest across the globe. The prosperity of the country is on account of its trade with exports being a source of income and import of necessary raw materials contributing to the wide range of indigenous supply of goods and services. The domestic currency is among the soundest currencies in the world. Moreover the country is reputed for high quality fina ncial and banking services. The investment in a country thrives on a stable exchange rate. As mentioned above the country attracts good investments on account of a strong domestic currency. The performance of the banks depends strongly on this factor. The banks can draw good investments from the overseas as the clients are convinced about the value of their investments. Besides the added benefits of tax haven is also one of the reasons that make the region an