Multiple foreign banks are exploring a merger or tie-up with UBS, according to the Swiss newspaper Blick.

Citing someone with close knowledge of the matter, the newspaper reported that eight or more banks have told UBS they are interested in such a deal.

Blick added that online rumours suggest Deutsche Bank, Morgan Stanley and Standard Chartered are being openly discussed as organisations that could be in talks for the merger.

A UBS spokesperson told the publication: “We do not comment on speculation or opinions on this topic.”

UBS is the world’s largest private bank, with over $7 trillion in assets and an extensive presence around the world’s financial markets.

It is facing more stringent capital requirements imposed by the Swiss parliament, with the bank now required to back its foreign units with 90 per cent Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) capital.

UBS estimates the new capital rules will require it to hold up to $24 billion in additional capital, if passed by the Swiss lower house in early 2027.

While the Swiss parliament intends the rules to prevent a repeat of the Credit Suisse collapse, its chief Sergio Ermotti argues that they impact its competitiveness. In March, the Swiss newspaper Neue Zuercher Zeitung reported that the bank has extended Ermotti’s tenure to deal with the capital row.

Swiss parliamentarians had proposed several options to water down the new rules. These included an approach that would have put the new requirements between 50 and 80 per cent, as well as a formal proposal introduced just before that vote that would have allowed UBS to cover half of its capitalisation with a cheaper form of debt known as ​Additional Tier 1 capital.

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