Robert Wolf, chairman of UBS AG’s Americas unit and one of Wall Street’s top supporters of President Obama, is leaving the Swiss bank after 18 years to start an advisory firm.
Wolf, 50, will continue to work on Zurich-based UBS’s current mandates and on generating new bank business from his company, 32 Advisors, according to a memo.
At UBS, Switzerland’s largest lender, he has served as president and chief operating officer of the investment bank and as head of fixed income, among other roles.
Wolf, who joined UBS in 1994 after 10 years at Salomon Brothers in fixed-income sales and trading, wrote in the memo that he’s “pleased to remain engaged with UBS and continue contributing to the company’s growth and progress.” His departure was reported earlier by the Wall Street Journal.
UBS was shaken by the discovery of a $2.3 billion loss from unauthorized trading in September, which resulted in the departure of CEO Oswald Gruebel.