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Zürcher KantonalbankZK
Zürcher Kantonalbank review

Zürcher Kantonalbank

Four stars: protected deposits, a full published service range and a stated policy on third-party payments.

Booking centreSwitzerland
RegulatorFINMA
Legal formLicence holder
GroupZürcher Kantonalbank Group
Websitezkb.ch
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PPLI.com
Private Bank Rating
4 out of 5 stars
UHNW assessment with client feedback
Reviewed 6 November 2026 · Q4 2026 edition
Updated every quarter
Editorial baseline signed byNoam CohenEditor, Bank Intelligence
About the rating
4 out of 5, Q4 2026 edition
price level of published fees
1matter on the record, 2018
Not publishedminimum relationship
The editor's opinion

Why Zürcher Kantonalbank has four stars

Zürcher Kantonalbank has a four-star overall rating. The editorial assessment was five stars. Remediation of past findings has been verified by the regulator. What a family should weigh: a significant regulatory finding stands on the record in the last ten years.

The booking centre received 11 client ratings, averaging 2.1 out of 5. At this sample size, the client average carries 18.3% weight when it is lower than the editorial assessment. The adjustment takes the published rating from five to four stars. How the adjustment works.

Noam Cohen, Editor, Bank IntelligenceReviewed 6 November 2026, Q4 2026 edition. The rating weighs the public record together with what clients and their advisers tell us in confidence; retail products, branches and apps play no part.

Where Zürcher Kantonalbank stands out

  • Remediation of past findings has been verified by the regulator.
  • Custody assets are protected by statute in the booking centre, with conditions a family should read.
  • Deposits are covered by a statutory protection scheme.
  • The custody terms are public and address most of what a family needs to know.
  • A full range of private banking services is published for this booking unit.

What to weigh

  • A significant regulatory finding stands on the record in the last ten years.

The rating expresses the opinion of PPLI.com on the date shown. It is not a statement of fact about the bank, not a credit rating, not a forecast of failure and not investment advice.

The record

Regulatory and legal record

What regulators, prosecutors and courts have decided, recorded against the legal entity they named, with the status, the amounts as published and a link to the original document. Claims and investigations still under way are marked as open.

201813 August 2018

Deferred prosecution agreement, conspiracy to help US taxpayer clients evade US taxes

ZKB was charged in the Southern District of New York with conspiring to help US taxpayer clients evade taxes and entered a three-year DPA under which it admitted its conduct and paid USD 98.5 million, which reflected cooperation credit that the US Department of Justice reduced because of some of ZKB's actions. Two ZKB bankers pleaded guilty the same day; a third remained a fugitive.

The Agreement requires ZKB to pay a total of $98.5 million.

ZKB said it had adjusted its cross-border wealth management business since 2009 and follows a strict tax-compliant policy.

US Attorney's Office SDNY / US Department of JusticeResolution with admissionTotal payment USD 98.5 millionAdmission of the factsPrimary source
Clients and standing

Client experience and financial standing

What clients meet at Zürcher Kantonalbank, read from complaint registers, ombudsman decisions and court records, independent reporting and what clients and their advisers tell PPLI.com in confidence. Announcements by the bank, awards and marketing material are left out.

UHNW client ratings

2.1 out of 5, based on 11 client ratings for this booking centre.

What clients report

The bank's own Trustpilot profile, claimed by the bank in October 2026, scores 2.1 out of 5 from 160 reviews and covers the whole bank rather than its private banking.

Worth raising with the bank

  • Ask which of the revised requirements FINMA noted in October 2026 remain to be implemented in the bank's emergency plan, and by when.
  • Ask what lifts the S&P rating to AAA from the bank's stand-alone credit profile of aa-, confirmed in November 2025.

Financial standing

Credit ratings published by the agencies, dated by the latest agency or bank document that confirms them
AgencyRatingOutlookAs ofRated company
S&PAAA (stand-alone credit profile aa-)Not statedNovember 2025Zürcher Kantonalbank
Moody'sAaa (long-term issuer)Not statedAugust 2026Zürcher Kantonalbank
FitchAAAStableFebruary 2026Zürcher Kantonalbank
What it costs

What Zürcher Kantonalbank charges, compared

Zürcher Kantonalbank publishes its fees. The figures below are its list prices, read on 6 November 2026 from the document linked at the foot of this section. To compare banks fairly we put every published fee in US dollars at the same indicative rates and apply it to the same reference amounts, then rate each fee against the average of the other banks that publish it. Five stars is the lowest fee, one star the highest. Terms a family actually negotiates are often different, and the bank can change its schedule at any time.

Price level of the published fees8 fees compared with the other banks that publish them
FeeZürcher KantonalbankOther banksAgainst the others
Custody and safekeepingeffective rate on USD 25 million0.30% a yearFlat rate by place of safekeeping, not by asset volume. Source0.30% a yearaverage of 38 other banksaround the average
Advisory mandateeffective rate on USD 12.5 million1.30% a year Source0.91% a yearaverage of 21 other banksamong the most expensive
Equity tradecommission on a USD 250,000 trade, major exchange0.80%stated as a maximum Source0.80%average of 47 other banksaround the average
Bond tradecommission on a USD 500,000 trade0.40%stated as a maximum Source0.96%average of 42 other banksamong the lowest
Third party fund subscriptionfee on a USD 250,000 subscription1.50% Source1.38%average of 42 other banksaround the average
Currency conversionmargin on a USD 1 million spot conversion0.53%stated as a maximum Source0.72%average of 30 other banksbelow the average
Account maintenanceper yearUSD 0 a yearCHF 0 per month SourceRetail schedule, shown as published and not compared with private banking terms
Minimum annual feeper year, or fee below the asset thresholdUSD 62 a yearCHF 50 per year SourceUSD 4,450 a yearaverage of 38 other banksamong the lowest
Outgoing international transferper transfer, standardUSD 5CHF 4 SourceRetail schedule, shown as published and not compared with private banking terms
Transfer of securities to another bankper positionUSD 125CHF 100 SourceUSD 126average of 38 other banksaround the average
Closing the accountone offUSD 0CHF 0 SourceRetail schedule, shown as published and not compared with private banking terms

Not in the published schedule: discretionary mandate, lombard loan margin.

Third party payments. The schedule states: “the Bank may receive the distribution fees set out below from product providers”

Sources.

  1. Investment business price overview, October 2025 (form INT 142 10/25), read on 6 November 2026. General tariff for all private clients including private banking; German original: preisuebersicht_anlagegeschaeft_de_sept2025.pdf.
  2. Preisübersicht und Konditionen für Privatkunden, Ab 1. März 2026 (DE), read on 6 November 2026. Accounts, packages and payments for private clients.
  3. ZKB Anlageberatung Expert, Premium, Classic (Ergänzung zum Produktblatt), December 2023 (DE), read on 6 November 2026. FinSA cost illustration, not a tariff table; gives the bank's own service cost for each advisory line at an assumed amount.
  4. Compensation from Third Parties - Sales Commissions and Other Monetary Benefits, As at January 2026, read on 6 November 2026. Used for the retrocession statement only.

How the comparison works: USD 25 million booked with the bank: half under a discretionary balanced mandate, half in custody with advice; 24 equity trades of USD 250,000 and 8 bond trades of USD 500,000 a year; 6 currency conversions of USD 1 million; 24 outgoing international transfers. Tiered fees are applied to those amounts tranche by tranche, stated minimums are applied, and amounts are converted at indicative rates of 2026-11-06. Read how we compare fees.

The bank at a glance

Identity, protection and services

Legal identity

Legal nameZürcher Kantonalbank
LEI165GRDQ39W63PHVONY02
LicenceBank  Source
RegulatorFINMA
Legal formLicence holder
OwnerCanton of Zurich (state guarantee; institution of cantonal law)  Source

Ownership

Group parentCanton of Zurich (provider of endowment capital; Zürcher Kantonalbank is an independent institution under cantonal law)  Source
ControlCanton of Zurich, 100%; state owned  Source (2024)

Ownership is shown as published, with its date. It describes who owns the bank; it does not, by itself, suggest any wrongdoing by the bank or its owners.

Financial strength, as reported

Credit ratingsS&P AAA (stand-alone credit profile aa-); Moody's Aaa (long-term issuer); Fitch AAA
CET1 ratio21.2%; risk-based capital ratio going concern 22.7%; total assets CHF 206,177 m (2025 (year-end figures column))  Source
Total client assetsCHF 578,950 m (assets under management CHF 498,598 m) (2025 (year-end figures column))  Source

Services published for this booking unit

Private clients
Discretionary management
Advisory mandates
Custody only (execution and safekeeping)
Lombard lending
Mortgage lending
Multi currency accounts
Trust and fiduciary services
Family office services
Wealth planning
Consolidated reporting
External asset manager desk

Offered at this booking centreOffered by the group, not confirmed hereNot located, which does not mean unavailable
Checked on the bank's own pages, 6 November 2026.

Access and costs

Minimum relationshipNot published
US personsNot published
Fee schedulePublished, October 2025 (form INT 142 10/25)  Source  Compared below
Third party paymentsPublished  Source
Transfer out termsPublished  Source

Protection of client assets

Deposit protectionAll banks with a Swiss office must be members of esisuisse: privileged deposits are protected up to CHF 100,000 per client per bank, including non-resident clients and foreign currency deposits, within a system cap.
Custody lawSwiss Banking Act art. 37d: custody assets held for clients are separated from the bankrupt bank's estate and handed over to the clients, with privileged deposits protected under arts. 37a and 37h.
Custody termsPublished  Source

Before opening an account

  • Moving the portfolio. Use the published transfer terms as a starting point. Ask the bank to flag positions in your portfolio that would require consent, manual handling or a sale, and to quote the charges separately.
  • Cross-border eligibility. If a settlor, beneficiary or beneficial owner has U.S. ties, ask the named entity to confirm eligibility for your structure and which investment services it can provide.
  • Exit costs. The fee comparison shows USD 125 per position for a securities transfer. Ask what rate would apply to your mandate and whether the receiving bank or a sub-custodian would charge separately. See published fees.
Your experience

Rate Zürcher Kantonalbank

If you bank with Zürcher Kantonalbank or advise clients who do, your experience forms part of its PPLI.com rating. Every response is read by the editor and treated in strict confidence.

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Our commitment to confidentiality

Your name, email and telephone number are seen only by the PPLI.com editor. They are never published, never passed to Zürcher Kantonalbank or any other bank, and never used for marketing. We may contact you once to clarify your assessment. Once verified by our editors, your assessment can lead to a disclosed adjustment of this bank's PPLI.com rating. It is never published with your name.

Sources

All 19 documents cited on this page, by subject.

Regulatory and legal record

  1. US Attorney's Office SDNY / US Department of Justice: Deferred prosecution agreement, conspiracy to help US taxpayer clients evade US taxes, 13 August 2018justice.gov

Fees

  1. Zürcher Kantonalbank: Price overview investment business (PDF)zkb.ch · Fees
  2. Zürcher Kantonalbank: Anlageberatung expert premium classic ergaenzung (PDF)zkb.ch · Fees
  3. Zürcher Kantonalbank: Preisuebersicht konditionen privatkunden (PDF)zkb.ch · Fees
  4. Zürcher Kantonalbank: vertriebsentschaedigungen EN (PDF)zkb.ch · Fees

Identity, ownership, finances and services

  1. FINMA: Bewilligungstraeger (PDF)finma.ch · Licence
  2. Zürcher Kantonalbank: 001 Gesetz ueber die Zuercher Kantonalbank 2024 (PDF)zkb.ch · Owner
  3. Zürcher Kantonalbank: ZKB Kennzahlen Konzern 2025zkb.ch · CET1 ratio
  4. Zürcher Kantonalbank: Private bankingzkb.ch · Services
  5. Zürcher Kantonalbank: Vermoegensverwaltungzkb.ch · Services
  6. Zürcher Kantonalbank: Investment advicezkb.ch · Services
  7. Zürcher Kantonalbank: Preisuebersicht anlagegeschaeft (PDF)zkb.ch · Services
  8. Zürcher Kantonalbank: Broschuere mehr private banking fuer sie (PDF)zkb.ch · Services
  9. Zürcher Kantonalbank: Zinsen preisezkb.ch · Services
  10. Zürcher Kantonalbank: Private bankingzkb.ch · Services
  11. Zürcher Kantonalbank: Vermoegensverwalterzkb.ch · Services
  12. Zürcher Kantonalbank: Conditions safe custody accounts (PDF)zkb.ch · Third party payments
  13. Zürcher Kantonalbank: Preisuebersicht anlagegeschaeft de sept2025 (PDF)zkb.ch · Transfer out terms

The bank

  1. Zürcher Kantonalbank, websitezkb.ch

For Zürcher Kantonalbank

Before we publish a significant negative finding that is not already public, we give the bank the facts and time to comment, on the same timetable for every bank. Decisions of regulators and courts are shown as they were published. Corrections we verify are published with the date of the change. Write to [email protected] quoting reference BK-CH-ZKB-92E599.

Reviewing this file with us

Families and their advisers read this file before they open an account. It can only be as complete as the documents we can find, and much of what sets a private bank apart, from its custody terms to the way a client team works, is rarely published.

If you represent Zürcher Kantonalbank, one of our Bank Intelligence analysts can go through the file with you: correct anything that is out of date, add terms and documents that are not yet public, and set out what has improved since our last edition. The review is a paid engagement for the analyst's time and research.

The rating itself stays with our editor and follows what the documents show, so we cannot promise a particular result. When a review changes the file, this page notes that the bank took part, with the date and what was added.

Speak to an analyst

About this file

Researched by the PPLI.com research desk from the public sources listed. The rating is our editorial opinion; read how we rate.

Important information. Editorial opinion of PPLI.com on the date shown, based on public information, client experience and editorial judgment. Not a statement of fact, a credit rating or investment, legal, tax or financial advice; verify with the bank and your own advisers before acting. No liability is accepted for reliance on this content. Bank names and logos are used for identification only. Ratings are updated every quarter. This is the Q4 2026 edition, and a rating can change between editions if something material happens. Full disclaimer
Editorial baseline signed by Noam Cohen, Editor, Bank IntelligenceReviewed 6 November 2026Methodology 2.4Reference BK-CH-ZKB-92E599
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