Zurich-based insurance outfit Swiss Life has announced plans to launch a European online banking portal, redsafe.com.
Scheduled to open in January 2001, Swiss Life says the new bank will provide clients with a comprehensive range of online financial services. Expansion to other European countries is planned for later in the year.
Billed as the first exclusive online bank in Switzerland, Redsafe says it will offer a range of solutions for asset gathering and wealth management on a single platform. Banking products and securities trading will be supplemented by fund and insurance products from multiple providers, including the Swiss Life/Rentenanstalt Group.
The aim of the bank is to provide customers with a complete overview of their current financial position online. All investors will have the option of drawing up their individual risk profile with specific investment recommendations and carrying out transactions in real-time, says the company.
Redsafe Bank CEO is Volker Gerlach, 43, a former manager of Gemini Consulting Switzerland. The bank is headquartered in Zurich and currently employs 40 individuals.
In a seperate announcement, Swiss Life says it will establish an independent company in the UK before the end of the year, with the aim of providing a service platform for expatriates under the name of "Propeller". The new division will offer advice on tax, visas, work permissions and financial services. It is planned to quickly expand into Switzerland and other countries. Business operations will be managed by David Kneeshaw, who was responsible for the private individual insurance business at Swiss Life UK.