6: Heiko Schlag

An energetic man of action with plenty of stamina: Heiko Schlag, head of Germany at Julius Baer, would definitely fit the bill. He's been building the bank's presence in Europe's largest economy for eight years and managed to increase the number of offices to 10, hiring dozens of relationship managers. Schlag has shown how to grow in Europe's most important wealth management market. What he yet has to show for all his efforts are steady profits. Pictet by contrast says it is profitable in Germany, as one of the very few Swiss private banks.

Of course, even if Pictet were to be interested in Schlag – he's built a formidable reputation within the bank and seems unlikely to give on it now.

The Less Likely Few

The same holds true for some of the aspiring top bankers who can expect to rise further within Baer's ranks. This applies to Yves Robert-Charrue, head of Europe and well-known to Collardi from their time spent at Credit Suisse; to Philipp Rickenbacher, the head of external wealth managers and Nic Dreckmann, operations chief at Julius Baer.