“Tough situation for re-leasing”: CS branches in prime locations likely to remain empty for years

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There will only be one! The fate of the Credit Suisse branch in Winterthur seems certain. There is a UBS branch just across the street and the bubbly is kept cold here. Because it is now clear that the new UBS will fully integrate CS’s Swiss business. And only one bank branch is needed at the location.

It is not yet officially known what will happen to the CS bank teller branches. “It is too early to make a statement on this matter,” UBS told Blick. Property owners who rented CS branches were also left in the dark. “As the owner, we have not been contacted yet,” says Roman Bühlmann, spokesman for the Asga pension fund. He owns the property at Stadthausstrasse 16 in Winterthur where CS is rented.

These branches are close to each other

Bühlmann is probably not alone in this. Credit Suisse currently has 97 branches. Some of the buildings are rented, and some are located in a building belonging to a bank. According to Blick research, there are currently 75 locations in Switzerland, each with at least one CS and UBS branch. Replication increases in larger populations. For example, there are 20 locations in Zurich: eleven UBS and nine CS branches. Most of the time they are very close together.

It is obvious that some of these branches will disappear. The two banks had repeatedly reduced their branch networks before the merger. Credit Suisse last announced that it would close 14 branches in 2022 by the end of February 2023.

Multi-year rental agreements

So what happens to buildings when bank tellers are closed and safes are emptied? Nothing seems likely to happen in the near future where Credit Suisse has signed a lease. Multi-year lease agreements are common in the industry.

“Usually these are periods of five to ten years,” says Patrick Schnorf (49), partner at real estate consultancy Wüest Partner. Additionally, a bank branch has some characteristics that make re-letting difficult. Bank branches are built to high security standards and have special floor plans. “This is definitely a challenging starting point for re-leasing,” Schnorf says.

complex transformation

If branches are to be reused, a comprehensive renovation is required. Therefore, it is quite possible that CS branches will become slow sellers for UBS.

According to Schnorf, bank branches also have a few things in their favor. First of all is the good location of the meters. They are usually located in a central location frequented by passersby. “Such spaces are currently in great demand, especially in the retail sector,” says Patrick Schnorf.

Owner Asga is not yet aware of plans to open a CS branch on her property in Winterthur.

Source :Blick