UBS has whittled down its shortlist to 4 administration consultants to advise on its integration of rival Credit score Suisse, in what is predicted to be one of the vital profitable monetary companies advisory contracts lately.

Swiss financial institution UBS is about to determine whether or not to award the contract to Bain & Firm, Boston Consulting Group, McKinsey or Oliver Wyman within the coming days, based on individuals concerned within the course of. Smaller contracts may very well be awarded at later dates for extra specialist work, stated the identical individuals who warned UBS might determine to reopen the method.

UBS executives invited bids from administration consultants within the days following its settlement to rescue Credit score Suisse in a historic $3.25bn deal that was orchestrated by Swiss authorities.

The duty of bringing collectively for the primary time two world systemically essential monetary establishments is predicted to take a number of years and be fiendishly sophisticated.

The mixed group could have 120,000 employees globally, however tens of hundreds of job cuts are anticipated.

This week, UBS chair Colm Kelleher changed chief govt Ralph Hamers together with his predecessor Sergio Ermotti in recognition of the dimensions of the problem of constructing the transaction successful.

“That is the most important single monetary transaction since 2008,” Kelleher instructed reporters. “That brings with it important execution danger.”

Ermotti, who formally begins on Wednesday, is predicted to have a say on which guide is chosen, although the combination course of is being led by chief info and digital officer Mike Dargan.

Claiming the contract can be a boon for the profitable bidder, at a time when banks are typically slicing again on their spending on exterior consultants.

Final yr, UBS focused decreasing its spending on exterior advisers as a part of a pre-takeover drive to chop $1bn of prices by the top of this yr.

Lately, UBS has employed McKinsey to assist Hamers develop his technique for the financial institution, which was unveiled final yr, and to implement an agile working technique, which is geared toward rushing up decision-making. Some senior bankers have expressed concern about UBS creating an over-reliance on the agency.

Equally, the financial institution used consultants from Oliver Wyman to advise on its danger administration operations and BCG for some smaller initiatives, based on individuals accustomed to inner workings.

Credit score Suisse had additionally been making an attempt to cut back its use of exterior advisers, which included a plan to halve spending on consultants final yr. It diminished its exterior guide headcount by a fifth within the remaining quarter of 2022. It relied on recommendation from McKinsey for its two latest restructuring plans — one beneath former chair António Horta-Osório and the opposite from final yr that geared toward radically reforming the enterprise.

As a part of the accompanying cost-cutting plans, Credit score Suisse sought recommendation from Oliver Wyman and BCG, whereas Deloitte supplied enter on the financial institution’s pay coverage, based on individuals with information of their involvement.

UBS, Bain, BCG, McKinsey and Oliver Wyman declined to remark.

Extra reporting by Michael O’Dwyer