When I worked in banking back in NZ, I remember my boss explaining why our employer didn’t have a Private Banking arm. For those who aren’t familiar with the term, Private Banking is essentially a more hands-on, bespoke service that is offered to high net worth individuals. It’s very profitable.
The issue, or so he claimed, was that there simply weren’t enough candidates in NZ to make it worthwhile. This wasn’t just due to the low population (more people live in Colorado than in New Zealand), but also due to priorities. According to him, most New Zealanders were very motivated to get the 3Bs, but not much past there.
The three Bs are the Boat, the Bach (the Kiwi term for beach house), and the BMW. Once those are achieved, the desire for a lot of New Zealanders is to take their foot off the pedal, and go enjoy the good life. From the bank’s perspective, this is a tragedy.
In a place like America, and ESPECIALLY in places like the Bay Area, we always hear stories of people doubling down. The serial entrepreneur. The Elon Musk and Jamie Dimond types. Those who read Marc Andreesen’s manifesto and decided that yes, “it’s time to build”.
Is one way better? Depends on who you are. As someone who is a long way away from the 3Bs, I get the appeal!
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