"Private Banking" Under the "Spotlight"

Recently, the "private banking services" of a joint-stock bank have entered the public's attention.

When new deposits reach the tens of millions, it can secure internship opportunities for children at major internet companies and prestigious financial firms. This information has ignited the public's "interest."

Although the relevant bank later clarified that this was a service commissioned by its private banking department to provide internship training and information services for clients' children through a third-party organization, and promptly announced the suspension of this service, the attention and discussion from all parties only increased.

What exactly are private banking services?

What areas and aspects do these services involve?

What are the thresholds for private banking?

How are these services matched with personal assets?

Perhaps the following text can provide some answers.

Physical Healing

"Reuniting with another self." This is how a client event poster from a private bank in South China describes it.

This event led clients to valleys and forests, helping them relax through singing bowl therapy.

It is reported that singing bowl therapy is supported by special metal alloys, producing rich sounds and vibrations through striking, allowing the body to achieve self-repair and balance, becoming a method for urban dwellers to relieve stress and anxiety in recent years.

Zhi Shi Tang discovered: This private bank often takes clients to "get close to nature," including fruit picking in forest parks, experiencing grassland camping and wilderness dining, mountain biking, and creek kayaking.

Escaping the hustle and bustle of the city and soothing emotions has become an important entry point for private banks to maintain clients.

Similar activities include sports events: some private banks regularly hold outdoor and indoor golf activities.

Of course, private banks also directly address the care of physical and mental health, such as one-on-one psychological health services, music therapy, quality herbal medicine identification and tasting, on-site therapeutic massage, and consultations with renowned doctors.

Children's "Event Privileges"

In the process of maintaining high-net-worth clients, private banks extend their services beyond asset allocation to the next generation of clients to increase stickiness with clients.

In fact, clients' children are also a reserve client resource for the future business of private banks, allowing them to subtly engage with wealth management knowledge from a young age and integrate into social circles.

For example, some private banks regularly hold parent-child sports events and fun museum tours, and also arrange for clients' children to serve as ball boys at major football events, walking onto the field with the competing teams' players.

The so-called ball boys must accompany the teams onto the field in international top football events (i.e., ceremonial ball boys) or be scattered outside the goal line as event service ball boys.

There are also ways for clients' children to have "close contact" with football players, such as a private bank in Northeast China organizing interactions between clients' daughters and national women's football team players through games like passing.

It is worth mentioning that there are also "brain competitions" aimed at children: a private bank in North China planned a financial role-playing game (interactive game) for clients' children aged 15-23 earlier this year, allowing them to perceive future trends in the financial industry

Providing Guidance for Education

Zhi Shi Tang has noticed that an important aspect of private banking services is "accompanying" clients' children, with education being a key focus that not only involves academic education but also covers practical internship activities with external institutions.

Firstly, services related to college entrance examinations and application guidance provide organized support for candidates and parents through one-on-one consultations, offline salons, and online information services.

Some private banks mentioned in their services, "prepared emergency support for students' further education after the college entrance examination, ensuring that children have better options for further education through different pathways."

Secondly, there are admission guide activities for overseas institutions. In addition to university education, private banks also focus on consulting services for secondary school selection.

Content includes: types of children suitable for international schools, choices of international curricula, and preparation for international departments/international schools.

Additionally, some private banks specifically provide planning services for North American high school education for clients' children who intend to study abroad during high school.

Thirdly, study tours lead clients' children to visit prestigious schools in developed countries, engage with professors from those schools, and mention details about obtaining recommendation letters for further education from relevant professors in their promotions.

Fourthly, overseas internship opportunities are provided by private banks through their resource networks or by coordinating with third-party institutions to offer relevant career opportunities for clients' children, with some services even covering current high school students.

For example, this year, a private bank offered clients' children ( registered high school students, university students, and graduate students aged 16-25 ) the opportunity to participate in the United Nations Youth Talent Development Program.

It is worth noting that the selection criteria for relevant clients' children are quite lenient:

No specific major is required; after registration, participants are provided with an online introductory course, followed by a network selection interview, and those selected will go to Geneva, Switzerland.

Touching the Frontiers of Wealth at Age Ten

In addition to educational support, some clients' children in high school have the opportunity to get close to financial institutions, including: "on-site" understanding of the internal operating mechanisms of banks; visiting insurance institutions to "gain industry insights"; and face-to-face discussions with insurance legal advisors on "asset planning concepts."

Zhi Shi Tang also noted that children of private bank clients have the opportunity to engage in exclusive "field research" starting from the age of ten.

For instance, those meeting the age criteria can participate in related study tour training camps, including visits to automobile manufacturing companies, learning about the history of automobile development and knowledge of autonomous driving, with founders of low-altitude economy enterprises and experts in virtual reality technology providing lectures.

Preparation for Employment

In maintaining client relationships, providing employment guidance for clients' children is an important aspect, taking various forms.

For example, a large private bank in Beijing specifically organized lectures on "preparing for returning to work" for international students, covering details such as analysis of the overseas employment environment, the proportion of practical experience in employment, and steps for career planning.

Memory Storage

Private banks have previously launched a service project called "Memory Storage" for accompanying clients' families.

After the Spring Festival holiday this year, a private bank in the southwest region set up a venue and hired a professional photographer to capture warm family photos (even for multi-generational families) According to this private bank, the move is to "enhance the bond with private banking clients... capturing moments of happiness."

In addition, cultural parent-child activities can also shape "family memories": a private bank in North China collaborated with a calligraphy institution to hold a "Poetry, Calligraphy, Painting, and Seal" parent-child public welfare class, inviting only 20 families of private equity clients to write their own "ink treasures" on-site.

Some private banks regularly hold lectures on children's mental health for clients, such as inviting psychological experts to answer questions about nurturing "happy childhoods" and "happy brains."

Leisure and Elegance

After their material needs are met, high-net-worth clients often pay more attention to spiritual pursuits, leading to various customized "leisure and elegance" activities.

For example: a study activity on Camellia tea roasting techniques, which emphasizes "Zen tea nurturing, calming the mind's perspective" in its promotion.

Another example: a lecture themed on appreciating classic operas, featuring the head of a symphony orchestra as the main speaker; a scholar in cultural relics teaching about underwater archaeology and the Silk Road.

Additionally, inviting renowned experts in Chinese classical poetry to analyze classic works, which is part of a series of courses where high-net-worth clients are also required to complete "homework," and relevant experts will provide feedback.

Client Asset Threshold "One in a Thousand"

Although almost all large and medium-sized banks now have departments or teams dedicated to private banking (hereinafter referred to as "private banking" services), the inception of this business is relatively recent—only eighteen years ago.

This service was first launched in 2007 by a state-owned large bank domestically. Since then, it has been quickly imitated and followed by various large banks, becoming almost standard for large and medium-sized banks.

Currently, the asset threshold for private banking at state-owned large banks and domestic large joint-stock banks is relatively high, with the lowest around 8 million yuan (financial assets), and more banks setting the threshold around 10 million yuan.

Some foreign banks have thresholds in foreign currency, which may translate to 13 million to 16 million yuan.

According to industry estimates, there are currently about 500,000 private banking clients across various banks in China (not excluding individuals who may have multiple accounts in different banks).

With a broader estimate, families eligible for private banking clients are likely to be less than one-thousandth of the total number of families in China.

This may also be the motivation for some banks to willingly provide more "customized services" for private banking clients