Global investment bank UBS has established a Perth office, having previously serviced the Western Australian market on a fly-in fly-out basis.
Its Perth office will be run by executive director Richard Saywell, who has been with UBS for three years and is shifting to Perth with his family.
The Perth office also has two analysts working for the group’s asset management division.
UBS spokesman Stuart Barton said the group’s third division, private wealth management would “eventually” establish a presence in Perth.
UBS has achieved great success in the WA market, competing with the likes of Gresham Advisory Partners, Azure Capital and Macquarie Bank to win investment banking mandates.
It is currently advising iron ore miner Mt Gibson Iron, which has applied to the Takeovers Panel over the contentious purchase of a 19.7 per cent shareholding by China’s Shougang group.
UBS is also advising ammonia manufacturer Burrup Fertilisers on its proposed initial public offering and stock market float, which could raise up to $600 million.
Another major transaction completed last week was uranium miner Paladin Energy’s $US325 million ($A360 million) convertible bond issue, which will mainly be used to fund expansion of its Kayelekera and Isa uranium projects.
UBS and Citigroup were joint lead managers, while UBS was sole global coordinator and Azure Capital corporate adviser to the company.
Other notable advisory roles for UBS have included NRW Holdings’ $300 million initial public offering, Ukrainian group Palmary Enterprises’ successful $1.3 billion acquisition of Consolidated Minerals and takeover defence to Macmahon Holdings, in tandem with Azure.
Mr Barton said the head of UBS’s resources practice, Campbell Stewart, would continue to be based on the east coast but was expected to spend half of his time in Perth.
