Sonnenberg Wealth Management is an independent, privately owned asset manager also offering family office services. Our independence prevents any conflicts of interest, allowing flexibility as well as entrepreneurial spirit in the process of finding the right and transparent solutions for your personal situation. Accordingly, protecting this independence is highly important for its owner and the rest of the team, which is why the company does not own any financial products and offers a fully transparent and straightforward fee structure. In addition, we are dedicated to share all the knowledge of our large but carefully selected international network with you to create the right tailor-made solutions allowing you to move forward both privately and professionally.
YOUR PARTNER FOR PROFESSIONAL WEALTH MANAGEMENT
In summary, we stand for:
- Aligning your investments to realize your personal and business goals
- Value creation
- Professional and independent advice
- Transparency
Naturally, this attitude is inherent in all our value-adding offers:
- Advisory services
- Managed mandates
- Sustainable and/or impact investments
- Family office services
- Combination of the above
CORPORATE PHILOSOPHY
Our Vision
Sonnenberg Wealth Management Ltd. is a leading and inspiring independent wealth manager that creates value for its clients with innovative, entrepreneurial and professional financial solutions.
Our Mission
We support our clients in preserving and developing their wealth over generations by offering services that go beyond traditional investments. Our clients benefit from our extensive experience in advising, structuring, and managing assets of high and ultra-high net worth individuals and families.
Our Values
- Value added: for all parties that are important to our clients
- Innovation: through inventive strategies and product solutions
- Independence: through the absence of conflicts of interest
- Professionalism: in all our actions and decisions
- Transparency: through straightforward communications and cost structure
OUR PARTNERS
To offer the best possible services for our clients, carefully tailored to their specific needs, we have an international network of partners. Besides our close connection to Aquila Ltd., we work closely with a wide range of service providers.
Aquila
Sonnenberg is a partner of Aquila Ltd., which is one of the largest platforms for independent asset managers in Switzerland. Aquila Ltd. has had securities broker status since 2005 and a banking license since 2012. Accordingly, it is subject to controls set by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA). In addition, it is 100% privately owned and therefore entirely independent.
Other Partners
- 10+ Custodian Banks
- Real Estate Providers
- International Tax Experts
- Legal Counsels
- Structuring Providers
- Independent Research Providers
SUPERVISION
FINMA
Sonnenberg Wealth Management Ltd. holds a license from the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) as an asset manager within the meaning of Art. 17 para. 1 FINIA and is directly supervised by FINMA.
FINMA is Switzerland’s independent financial-markets regulator. Its mandate is to supervise banks, insurance companies, financial institutions, collective investment schemes, and their asset managers and fund management companies. It also regulates distributors and insurance intermediaries. It is charged with protecting creditors, investors and policyholders. FINMA is responsible for ensuring that Switzerland’s financial markets function effectively.
FSCA
Sonnenberg Wealth Management Ltd. is licensed as a financial service provider by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) in South Africa in terms of section 8 of the South African Financial Advisory and Intermediary Service Act of 2002.
The FSCA was established to be the dedicated market conduct regulator in South Africa’s Twin Peaks regulatory model implemented via the Financial Sector Regulation Act. Their mandate includes all financial institutions that provide a financial product and/or a financial service as defined in the Financial Sector Regulation Act.
The Financial Services Act (FINSA)
The new Federal Financial Services Act (FINSA) came into force in Switzerland on January 1, 2020. On the one hand, it contains regulatory provisions on the offering of financial services and financial products and, on the other, protective mechanisms for investors. The SwissBanking brochure serves to provide information on the general risks involved in dealing with financial instruments.
PricewaterhouseCoopers
As a partner company of Aquila Ltd., Sonnenberg Wealth Management Ltd. is audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
PwC Switzerland is the leading audit and advisory company in Switzerland. PwC Switzerland has over 3,300 employees and partners in 14 locations in Switzerland and one in the Principality of Liechtenstein.
TEAM
Edith Aldewereld, born in 1974, joined Sonnenberg Wealth Management as a partner in July 2015.
Over the last 20 years she has built extensive knowledge in asset management and international private banking. At Sonnenberg she was the driving force behind the development of a sustainable investment portfolio. This project, which was labelled “Moving Money to Meaning”, is her passion and combines her personal values and mission with her working experience.
In addition to her work at Sonnenberg, she is co-teaching the course Sustainable Investments in Wealth Management at the University of Zurich. Moreover, she has also set up the network “Woman in Sustainable Finance” in Zurich, which aims at raising awareness of sustainable investment opportunities, supporting gender equality in the financial sector, and creating synergies through cooperation. She is also co-founder of the charity War Child Support Switzerland, which supports War Child in the Netherlands through fundraising.
From 2001 to 2015, Mrs. Aldewereld served in various positions in asset management and private banking at ABN AMRO Bank (Switzerland) and later at Union Bancaire Privée (UBP Ltd.) in Zurich. As a senior portfolio manager in the discretionary portfolio management department, she was responsible for several investment committees as well as for the customized management of the portfolios of UHNWI clients. She also took care of the strategical development and tactical implementation of the DPM sales strategy and the retention and acquisition of clients worldwide. After her move to private banking in the year 2007, she worked as a senior relationship manager focusing on the UK and the Netherlands. She retained this position even after ABN AMRO Bank (Switzerland) was taken over by UBP Ltd. in the year 2011.
From 1996 to 2001 she worked as an investment advisor private banking at the ING Bank in the Netherlands.
Mrs. Aldewereld studied commercial economics at the School of Business Administration and Economics in Venlo and has earned a degree as Certified European Financial Analyst (CEFA) at the VU University in Amsterdam.
She is fluent in Dutch, German and English and also speaks French and Italian.
Bruno Raffaele D’Onofrio, born in 1966, joined Sonnenberg Wealth Management as a partner in 2016.
At this point in time, he had already been working as an independent asset manager within Aquila. Ltd for three years.
From 1999 to 2013 Mr. D’Onofrio was employed as a relationship manager for Overseas and UK clients in the private banking division of the Credit Suisse Group, first at Bank Hofmann and after their merger at Clariden Leu.
In 1989 he started his career at Schweizerische Bankgesellschaft AG (now UBS AG), where he held various roles in the credit and trading department. In 1995 he decided to continue his career as a relationship manager in the private banking team servicing Israel, South Africa and the UK.
Mr. D’Onofrio speaks fluently German, Italian, French and English.
From 2013 to 2014, Mr. Genecand served in the premium portfolio management unit of the Credit Suisse Group, where he was mainly responsible for the elaboration of customized and tax-optimized investment proposals for international UHNWI clients. In addition, he was also accountable for the creation of individual reporting for various important clients of the bank on a monthly basis.
He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in business administration from the University of St.Gallen (HSG) with specializations in the areas of investments and finance in 2014. Four years later, he graduated from the same university with a master’s in banking and finance, which according to the Financial Times belongs to the ten best finance degrees in the world since 2011.
Mr. Genecand is fluent in French, German and English.
Katharina Gounakis, born 1971, joined Sonnenberg Wealth Management as a partner in May 2021.
She has a 30-year banking experience; 25 years of which she has worked in Wealth & Asset Management in various positions. Over the years she has specialized in serving
International – predominantly Greek – HNWI & UHNWI-clients.
Before joining Sonnenberg Wealth Management, she was active at Bank Vontobel, BSI (formerly Banca del Gottardo) and Barclays Bank (Suisse) SA.
She completed the higher banking education in Zurich and holds the diploma of Associate Wealth Manager, AWM from AZEK. She also holds a degree of Shipping from ICS, Piraeus.
It is a matter of heart for Katharina Gounakis to offer her clients a very personal and professional, long-term as well as sustainable service.
Katharina Gounakis is fluent in German, English and Greek.
Robert Kalinic, born in 1962, joined Sonnenberg Wealth Management as a partner in 2016.
He initiated his professional career 30 years ago as a financial & commodities broker at a reputable international trading and brokerage company.
Several years later, he continue his professional path at an international universal bank, where he was leading the derivatives trading desk for the private banking clients. Following his transition to the investment banking division, he served for many years as Head of Structured Financial Products, which involved dealing with many reputable corporate clients in Switzerland. Later, he was appointed Head of Investment Advisory for the international private clients in Switzerland.
Subsequently, Mr. Kalinic was promoted to Director of Investment Research. Simultaneously, he held the position of Secretary General for the “Advisory and Discretionary Joint Investment Committee”, whose investment decisions were implemented in private clients mandates across 22 countries.
Since 2006 he is entirely focused on private banking clients.
Mr. Kalinic is fluent in Croatian, German, Italian, French, Spanish and English.
Vladimír Kvasnička, born in 1977, joined Sonnenberg Wealth Management as a partner in July 2020.
From 2012 to 2020, he was employed by Helvetic Trust AG as a senior partner responsible for his own customer base consisting mostly of Czech individuals.
From 2006 to 2012, Vladimír worked for Société Générale Private Banking (Suisse) in Zurich covering private clients from Czech and Slovak Republic as well as the rest of Eastern Europe including a few CIS countries.
In October 2000, after spending five years at the Czech Ministry of Finance, Securities Commission and the Econometrics Department of The Academy of Sciences, Vladimír started his career in the financial industry as financial markets analyst in the investment banking division of KB a.s. Half a decade later he moved internally to the Private Banking Department.
In 1998, he earned a bachelor’s degree from Charles University in Prague. Two years later, he graduated from the same university with a master’s in economic studies. In 2004 he successfully passed the CFA Level I examination.
Mr. Kvasnička is fluent in Czech/Slovak and English
From 2007 to 2014, he served in various positions within the Credit Suisse Group, including the position Head Portfolio Management Europe at Clariden Leu. Besides seats in various investment committees, he was also a fund manager of two asset allocation funds and the responsible portfolio manager for several UHNWI clients.
From 2003 to 2007 Mr. Lein worked as an investment manager at Sauerborn Trust, which was the largest independent multi-family office in Europe until its acquisition by UBS. He was responsible for the daily management of several complex and very large family portfolios with a strong focus on the performance after tax.
In addition to his asset allocation and investment management capabilities, Mr. Lein has extensive experience in designing, implementing and managing complex tax-optimized investment solutions and structures for clients domiciled in various tax jurisdictions.
He earned a Master of Science degree in business with majors in finance and auditing from the Universities of Trondheim and Bodø, Norway. Further, he holds a Licentiate in international economic relations from the University of Konstanz in Germany.
He is fluent in Norwegian, German and English.
Dr. Joel Levy, born in 1970, joined Sonnenberg Wealth Management as a partner in 2019.
In 2001, Dr. Levy started his private banking career and worked for Citigroup, Credit Suisse Group, Coutts and UBP, where he held a managing director position and desk head in private banking. Prior to that he was a corporate and venture capital lawyer.
Dr. Levy is a seasoned banker with a demonstrated history in servicing clients and their family’s needs, especially wealth preservation, portfolio and asset management, as well as family governance and succession planning.
Dr. Levy is a First Class Honours graduate from the University of Wales, Cardiff, where he read law and also earned a PhD in international trade.
He is fluent in English and Hebrew.
After successfully passing his juristic examinations, Dr. Renz completed a bank internship at the Swiss Credit Institute (now Credit Suisse),
where he subsequently became assistant to the HR director. In 1976, Dr. Renz assumed the role of legal adviser at Bank Hofmann in Zurich, which had recently
been bought by Credit Suisse but maintained its autonomy.
Later, he took on further responsibilities at the bank; such as human resources, securities management, payment services, etc. At the beginning of 1991,
he was promoted to the management of the Bank. Dr. Renz held this position until the year 2000, when Bank Hofmann lost its independence, which induced him to leave the institute.
In 2001, he joined the law firm Reichenbach & Partner, which focuses on commercial law issues. In the following years he served on various boards, mainly foundations and asset management companies. This includes Sonnenberg Wealth Management AG, with which he has been associated since its foundation. During this time he also worked the Liechtenstein Bankers Association in Vaduz.
Dr. Renz is also the author of the book “„Das Schweizerische Bankgeschäft“, which he wrote with his predecessor at Bank Hofmann Urs Emch. This was considered the leading book on the subject of banking law in Switzerland for several years.
Othello Rossi, born in 1957, joined Sonnenberg Wealth Management as a partner in 2015.
From 1998 to 2014, he was employed in the private banking division of the Credit Suisse Group, first as a relationship manager / Vice President for international clients at Bank Hofmann and then as a Senior Vice President for clients from Western Europe while working at Clariden Leu.
From 1976 to 1998, Mr. Rossi worked first as a credit officer for institutional clients and later as a relationship manager for private European clients at UBS.
He earned a commercial degree from the Juventus Business School in Zurich as well as a federal business diploma from the Kaufmännische Führungsschule in Zürich. In addition, he participated in various AZEK trainings.
Mr. Rossi is fluent in German, Italian, French and English.
Niklaus Tschirky, born 1960, joined Sonnenberg Wealth Management AG as a partner in the corona year 2021 (in the 2nd wave).
The beginning of his career led him to banking institutions such as SBG (UBS) and CS in the area of securities trading / stock exchange followed by an Asian focus at Nomura Securities in the area of
equities / CBs and cum bonds.
The move to Asian banks first brought him to Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank (DKB), where he initially worked in the securities analysis area and later held a senior position in portfolio management.
During the period of transition of the British colony of Hong Kong to China, he headed the representative office of DKB in Hong Kong as Acting Chief Representative.
In the merger of DKB / IBJ / Fuji Bank into Mizuho Financial Group in 2000, he was responsible for the integration of the retail and wealth management front departments of
Mizuho Bank (Switzerland) Ltd. and finally took over the overall responsibility of the Global Wealth Management Division and the bank’s own treasury section for the Swiss subsidiary.
He holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (FH) with a major in Marketing and completed various courses at the University of Basel with Certficate of Advanced Studies in Nonprofit
Governance & Leadership and an intensive course in Foundation Management.
His expertise lies mainly in the investment of retirement assets and foundation assets invested according to BVG criteria as well as in-depth knowledge of pension fund issues. His extensive experience
in the field of foundation management (NPOs) makes him a competent contact person.
He is fluent in German, English and French.
In 2010, he joined Bank Clariden Leu in Zürich. Two Years later, this bank was fully integrated into the Credit Suisse Group and discontinued as an independent bank.
From 1990 to 2010, Mr. Vogel served in various positions within ABN AMRO Bank N.V. in The Netherlands and in Switzerland.
He earned his Bachelor in business administration (Baccalaureus) at the University of Professional Education in Sittard, The Netherlands.
Mr. Vogel is fluent in Dutch, German and English.
Erling Lein, born in 1974, is co-founder and managing partner of Sonnenberg Wealth Management.
From 2007 to 2014, he served in various positions within the Credit Suisse Group, including the position Head Portfolio Management Europe at Clariden Leu. Besides seats in various investment committees, he was also a fund manager of two asset allocation funds and the responsible portfolio manager for several UHNWI clients.
From 2003 to 2007 Mr. Lein worked as an investment manager at Sauerborn Trust, which was the largest independent multi-family office in Europe until its acquisition by UBS. He was responsible for the daily management of several complex and very large family portfolios with a strong focus on the performance after tax.
In addition to his asset allocation and investment management capabilities, Mr. Lein has extensive experience in designing, implementing and managing complex tax-optimized investment solutions and structures for clients domiciled in various tax jurisdictions.
He earned a Master of Science degree in business with majors in finance and auditing from the Universities of Trondheim and Bodø, Norway. Further, he holds a Licentiate in international economic relations from the University of Konstanz in Germany.
He is fluent in Norwegian, German and English.
Leendert Vogel, born in 1970, is co-founder and managing partner of Sonnenberg Wealth Management.
In 2010, he joined Bank Clariden Leu in Zürich. Two Years later, this bank was fully integrated into the Credit Suisse Group and discontinued as an independent bank.
From 1990 to 2010, Mr. Vogel served in various positions within ABN AMRO Bank N.V. in The Netherlands and in Switzerland.
He earned his Bachelor in business administration (Baccalaureus) at the University of Professional Education in Sittard, The Netherlands.
Mr. Vogel is fluent in Dutch, German and English.
Cédric Genecand, born in 1990, joined Sonnenberg Wealth Management as investment manager in 2014.
From 2013 to 2014, Mr. Genecand served in the premium portfolio management unit of the Credit Suisse Group, where he was mainly responsible for the elaboration of customized and tax-optimized investment proposals for international UHNWI clients. In addition, he was also accountable for the creation of individual reporting for various important clients of the bank on a monthly basis.
He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in business administration from the University of St.Gallen (HSG) with specializations in the areas of investments and finance in 2014. Four years later, he graduated from the same university with a master’s in banking and finance, which according to the Financial Times belongs to the ten best finance degrees in the world since 2011.
Mr. Genecand is fluent in French, German and English.
Dr. Hugo Renz born in 1943 is co-founder and chairman of Sonnenberg Wealth Management.
After successfully passing his juristic examinations, Dr. Renz completed a bank internship at the Swiss Credit Institute (now Credit Suisse),
where he subsequently became assistant to the HR director. In 1976, Dr. Renz assumed the role of legal adviser at Bank Hofmann in Zurich, which had recently
been bought by Credit Suisse but maintained its autonomy.
Later, he took on further responsibilities at the bank; such as human resources, securities management, payment services, etc. At the beginning of 1991,
he was promoted to the management of the Bank. Dr. Renz held this position until the year 2000, when Bank Hofmann lost its independence, which induced him to leave the institute.
In 2001, he joined the law firm Reichenbach & Partner, which focuses on commercial law issues. In the following years he served on various boards, mainly foundations and asset management
companies. This includes Sonnenberg Wealth Management AG, with which he has been associated since its foundation. During this time he also worked the Liechtenstein Bankers Association in Vaduz.
Dr. Renz is also the author of the book “„Das Schweizerische Bankgeschäft“, which he wrote with his predecessor at Bank Hofmann Urs Emch. This was considered the leading book on the subject
of banking law in Switzerland for several years.
Erling Lein, born in 1974, is co-founder and managing partner of Sonnenberg Wealth Management.
From 2007 to 2014, he served in various positions within the Credit Suisse Group, including the position Head Portfolio Management Europe at Clariden Leu. Besides seats in various investment committees, he was also a fund manager of two asset allocation funds and the responsible portfolio manager for several UHNWI clients.
From 2003 to 2007 Mr. Lein worked as an investment manager at Sauerborn Trust, which was the largest independent multi-family office in Europe until its acquisition by UBS. He was responsible for the daily management of several complex and very large family portfolios with a strong focus on the performance after tax.
In addition to his asset allocation and investment management capabilities, Mr. Lein has extensive experience in designing, implementing and managing complex tax-optimized investment solutions and structures for clients domiciled in various tax jurisdictions.
He earned a Master of Science degree in business with majors in finance and auditing from the Universities of Trondheim and Bodø, Norway. Further, he holds a Licentiate in international economic relations from the University of Konstanz in Germany.
He is fluent in Norwegian, German and English.
Leendert Vogel, born in 1970, is co-founder and managing partner of Sonnenberg Wealth Management.
In 2010, he joined Bank Clariden Leu in Zürich. Two Years later, this bank was fully integrated into the Credit Suisse Group and discontinued as an independent bank.
From 1990 to 2010, Mr. Vogel served in various positions within ABN AMRO Bank N.V. in The Netherlands and in Switzerland.
He earned his Bachelor in business administration (Baccalaureus) at the University of Professional Education in Sittard, The Netherlands.
Mr. Vogel is fluent in Dutch, German and English.