Unigestion appts PE head

Unigestion, the Swiss asset management firm, has appointed Dr Hanspeter Bader as head of its private equity division. He replaces David Chamberlain and will manage a team of experienced private equity professionals based in Geneva, London and Paris.

The appointment is part of Unigestion’s objective to further build up its private equity business. The firm has been an active investor in the private equity markets for more than 10 years’ and manages a series of private equity fund-of-funds and mandates.

Bader, 39, joined the private equity team at Unigestion in 1999 and, until now, was responsible for investment strategy, asset allocation and secondary transactions. Prior to this he spent ten years’ with UBS in Switzerland and the UK, involved particularly in private equity and leveraged finance. He has both a masters degree and a PhD in finance & economics from the University of St Gallen, Switzerland, and is also a CFA charter holder.

Unigestion manages four private equity fund-of-funds, in collaboration with Swiss bank Pictet, including one dedicated to secondaries as well as private equity portfolios on behalf of investors including Baloise Insurance and Nestlé. In 2002 the firm expanded its private equity team with the appointment of senior investment professionals in both its London and Geneva offices. Last year Unigestion delisted from the main market of the SWX Swiss Exchange, where it had been listed since 1987.