UBS AG plans to restructure many of its office back office functions has lured an executive from Credit Suisse to head up the effort, the Swiss bank said Wednesday.

UBS said that it will integrate its group-wide infrastructure and service functions (IT, human resources, procurement, real estate and facility management) into its Corporate Center division, and that it will centralize the management of its control functions (finance, risk, legal and compliance).

The firm said that merging the infrastructure and service functions, “creates the potential for sustainable efficiency increases and cost savings.” Additionally, it says that the control functions of UBS will become stronger and more effective through centralization.

It also appointed Ulrich Körner as chief operating officer and CEO of Corporate Center. In this newly created role, he will be a member of the group executive board and the group executive committee of the bank. Körner had been with Credit Suisse since 1998 and has served as a member of the executive management of the Credit Suisse Group for the last five years. He held various management positions, including CFO and COO of Credit Suisse.

IE