'This is huge, everybody wants to be liberal and offer access to the whole fund universe, because in the future it will not be a viable strategy not to,' said Ralph Warth, head of research at FundStreet, a Zurich-based online broker.

Currently, FondVest, the holding company of FondCenter - an independent online broker which provides access to virtually all of the 2,100 funds in Switzerland - is dominating the market giving it a major advantage in the ability to charge low prices. The banks would like to break this monopoly of FondVest's stronghold in Switzerland.

Maerki Baumann has already entered into agreements with some 8-10 providers which will enable the private Swiss bank to distribute around 250 external funds. Julius Baer Investment Funds has confirmed that it is still negotiating with fund providers and is still open to bids but intends to offer a range of 'best of breed funds' in addition to an analysis and evaluation service by the end of the year.

Credit Suisse Private Banking is already doing well with the facility to offer around 700 external funds from 30 providers such as : Mellon Global Investments, JP Morgan Fleming Asset Management, Putnam Investments, Pioneer Investments, Henderson Investors and INVESCO. But it is working towards enticing UBS Asset Management on to its books, which comprises an impressive 40% of Switzerland's fund industry.

The UBS Group web site, www.ubs.com, offers its own funds at present but is considering distributing other funds in the future. A spokesman told Global Fund Analysis that in Switzerland the commission investors pay when buying third-party funds through a bank, is getting lower and eventually will fully converge with the commission they must pay when purchasing the bank's proprietary funds. For UBS that commission ranges from 0.5-2%, and this 'convergence' has transpired from the move towards open architecture.