Switzerland’s third-largest wealth manager has completed its acquisition of Merrill Lynch’s Dublin based private banking unit, with both staff and clients transferring to Julius Baer over the weekend.

Gian Rossi, member of the executive board of Julius Baer and head northern, central and eastern Europe, said: “ Gaining a foothold in Ireland will enable us to further expand our footprint.”

John Crowe, who will continue to head up the Dublin-based wealth management business, noted that the Dublin team is “very excited to be part of the Julius Baer family; it is an extremely positive statement that a major Swiss private bank such as Julius Baer is launching a new office in Ireland.”

The new Irish business of Julius Baer, which is understood to employ about 10 people, will be run as a branch of Julius Baer International Limited based in London, and cooperate closely with the parent company. The offices will continue to be located in Central Park, Leopardstown.

The transaction is part of a wider integration of Merrill Lynch’s International Wealth Management business outside the US and Japan which Julius Baer agreed to acquire in August 2012 for $881 million. So far the businesses located in Switzerland, Uruguay, Chile, Luxembourg, Monaco, Hong Kong, Singapore, UK, Spain, Israel, Panama, Bahrain, Lebanon and the UAE have started or completed the transfer process as planned.

According to Julius Baer,the deal brings it “a major step forward in its growth strategy and will considerably strengthen its leading position in global private banking by adding substantial scale and additional offices primarily in growth markets, but also in Europe”.