Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft
Corporate brand
UnclaimedFrankfurter Bankgesellschaft is a German-Swiss private banking group and the principal private-banking platform associated with the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft is a private banking group headquartered in Frankfurt and operating through German and Swiss entities, including Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft (Deutschland) AG and Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft (Schweiz) AG. The group is fully owned by Helaba and forms part of the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe, the broader German savings-bank financial network. Its role is distinctive within that network: it complements the services of German savings banks by providing private banking for wealthy individuals and families, while also offering related family-office and corporate advisory capabilities. The group's direct origins date to 1969, when Bankenunion AG was established in connection with the restructuring and transfer of branches belonging to Deutsche Spar- und Kreditbank. The new company was jointly owned by DSK Bank, Frankfurter Sparkasse, Württembergische Landessparkasse and Nordbank. In August 2000, Bankenunion AG adopted the Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft name after acquiring the naming rights of a bank that had been founded in 1899. Around the same period, it broadened its customer base toward affluent private clients, moving beyond a narrower branch-banking heritage. Ownership subsequently became more concentrated. In 2007, Frankfurter Sparkasse, which was by then fully owned by Helaba, became the sole owner of Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft. In 2010, the German business acquired the Swiss private-banking operations of LB Swiss Privatbank AG. That Swiss institution had been founded in 1955, acquired by BayernLB in 1991, and transferred in stages to Helaba in 2001 and 2010. As part of the reorganization, LB Swiss Privatbank was renamed Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft (Schweiz) AG, creating the group's German-Swiss private-banking structure. The German business has expanded its physical presence beyond Frankfurt. It established a Düsseldorf branch and a Munich office in 2018, followed by a Hamburg branch in 2019 and a Saarbrücken office in 2021. On 1 December 2023, a newly established Frankfurt-based holding company took over the German and Swiss entities of the group, formalizing the group's structure under a common holding arrangement. Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft works with more than 80 percent of German savings banks, according to the cited reference material. Through these relationships, the group provides specialist private-banking expertise that local savings banks may not offer directly. Its activities include wealth management and private-banking services for affluent clients, a multi-family office, and mergers-and-acquisitions advice for medium-sized companies through IMAP M&A Consultants AG. The multi-family office is described as the only provider of its kind within the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe. In Switzerland, the group has been described as one of the larger German-owned private banks in the country, ranking second among German-owned Swiss private banks in the early 2020s.
History
Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft traces its immediate corporate history to the expansion and reorganization of German banking in the 1960s. In 1965, the private bank Merck Finck established Deutsche Spar- und Kreditbank, commonly known as DSK Bank, as a majority-owned subsidiary in Munich. DSK Bank subsequently developed branches in the Frankfurt, Hamburg and Munich areas. In 1968, it transferred its Hamburg-area branches to Nordbank AG, a joint venture involving the local Neue Sparkasse von 1864. The following year, its Frankfurt branches were transferred to a newly created institution, Bankenunion AG. Bankenunion AG was established in 1969 with four shareholders: DSK Bank, Frankfurter Sparkasse, Württembergische Landessparkasse and Nordbank. Each of the first three institutions held 30 percent, while Nordbank held 10 percent. This structure connected the new bank to both private-bank and savings-bank interests and provided the foundation for its later role within the German savings-bank sector. In August 2000, Bankenunion AG changed its name to Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft AG. The company acquired the naming rights of a bank founded in 1899, allowing it to adopt the Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft identity. The new identity coincided with a strategic broadening of its customer base to include wealthy private clients. The institution therefore developed from a branch-oriented banking structure into a more specialized private-banking business. Ownership changed materially during the following decade. By 2000, Frankfurter Sparkasse and Banca Carige each held 47.5 percent of the company, with Südtiroler Sparkasse holding the remaining 5 percent. In 2007, Frankfurter Sparkasse became the sole owner. Because Frankfurter Sparkasse was fully owned by Helaba, Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft became part of the Helaba group and, through that relationship, part of the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe. The group's Swiss activities derive from LB Swiss Privatbank AG, a Swiss private bank founded in 1955. BayernLB acquired the Swiss institution in 1991, and Helaba acquired it in stages in 2001 and 2010. In 2010, Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft took over the Swiss private-banking operations, and LB Swiss Privatbank AG was renamed Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft (Schweiz) AG. This transaction gave the group a cross-border German-Swiss structure and strengthened its position in Swiss private banking. In the early 2020s, it was described as the second-largest German-owned private bank in Switzerland. The German business expanded its regional network during the late 2010s and early 2020s. It established a Munich office and a Düsseldorf branch in 2018, a Hamburg branch in 2019, and a Saarbrücken office in 2021. These locations supported the group's strategy of serving clients and cooperating with savings banks across Germany rather than concentrating all activity in Frankfurt. Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft's institutional role is to complement the private-banking capabilities of German savings banks. The group cooperates with more than 80 percent of German savings banks, according to the cited reference material. Its service range includes private banking and wealth management for affluent clients, together with a multi-family office described as the only such provider in the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe. The group also controls IMAP M&A Consultants AG, which advises medium-sized companies on mergers and acquisitions. A further organizational change took place on 1 December 2023, when a newly established holding company based in Frankfurt took over both the German and Swiss entities. The transaction created a common holding structure for the group's two principal banking operations. Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft remains an active, unlisted private-banking group associated with Helaba and the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe, with operations in Germany and Zurich, Switzerland.
- 2023
New group holding company established
[1]On 1 December 2023, a Frankfurt-based holding company took over the German and Swiss entities.
- 2021
Saarbrücken office opened
[1]The group extended its German presence with an office in Saarbrücken.
- 2019
Hamburg branch opened
[1]The German business added a branch in Hamburg.
- 2018
Düsseldorf branch and Munich office opened
[1]The German entity expanded its domestic network with a branch in Düsseldorf and an office in Munich.
- 2010
Swiss private-banking business integrated
[1]The group took over LB Swiss Privatbank's operations and renamed the Swiss entity Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft (Schweiz) AG.
- 2007
Sole ownership transferred to Frankfurter Sparkasse
[1]Frankfurter Sparkasse became the sole owner, bringing the business more directly into the Helaba and Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe structure.
- 2000
Bankenunion becomes Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft
[1]The company changed its name to Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft AG after acquiring the naming rights of a bank founded in 1899.
- 1969
Bankenunion AG founded
[1]Bankenunion AG was created to receive branches in the Frankfurt area from Deutsche Spar- und Kreditbank.
- 1965
Deutsche Spar- und Kreditbank established
[1]Merck Finck created Deutsche Spar- und Kreditbank in Munich as a majority-owned subsidiary.
- 1955
Swiss predecessor established
[1]LB Swiss Privatbank, a predecessor of the group's Swiss business, was founded in Switzerland.
Products and positioning
A specialist private bank for affluent clients, positioned as the private-banking partner of the German savings-bank network and as a provider of complementary wealth-management, family-office and mid-market corporate-advisory services.
Private banking
Private banking and wealth management
The group's core business serves wealthy private clients through private-banking and wealth-management services. Its German-Swiss structure supports client coverage in Germany and Switzerland, while its cooperation with savings banks allows local Sparkassen to complement their own customer offering with specialist private-banking capabilities.
Family-office services
Multi-family office
Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft operates a multi-family office for the comprehensive support of multiple wealthy families. The service extends the group's private-banking proposition beyond investment management and is described in the reference material as the only multi-family-office provider within the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe.
Corporate advisory
M&A advisory
Through its control of IMAP M&A Consultants AG, the group provides mergers-and-acquisitions advice focused on medium-sized companies. This activity broadens the organization beyond personal wealth management into advisory work for entrepreneurs and mid-market businesses.
Brand decisions
2023
Common holding structure for German and Swiss entitiesStrategyBackground
The group operated through German and Swiss entities that had developed through separate historical ownership and integration steps.
Action taken
On 1 December 2023, a newly founded Frankfurt-based holding company took over both entities.
Aftermath
The German and Swiss businesses were placed under a common group holding structure.
2010
Integration of LB Swiss Privatbank operationsM&ABackground
Helaba had acquired LB Swiss Privatbank in stages, following BayernLB's ownership of the Swiss private bank.
Action taken
Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft took over the Swiss operations and renamed the institution Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft (Schweiz) AG.
Aftermath
The group gained a Swiss private-banking platform and developed its German-Swiss operating model.
2000
Rebrand and move toward affluent private clientsStrategyBackground
Bankenunion AG had acquired the naming rights of a bank founded in 1899 and was broadening its customer base beyond its earlier branch-banking origins.
Action taken
The company adopted the Frankfurter Bankgesellschaft name and expanded its focus to wealthy private customers.
Aftermath
The rebrand established the identity under which the group developed its private-banking positioning.
Sources1 sources
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