VP Bank Group, the Liechtenstein-based private banking firm, is to close its Dubai-based asset management company having decided to no longer have a permanent base in the emirate.

Three local employees will be affected by the closure, which was motivated by a combination of the increasing regulatory burden facing the cross-border asset management sector and the need for a streamlined, efficient approach to market penetration, VP Bank said in a statement.

The firm said it will continue to try to grow its client base in the Near and Middle East, and that such clients will be serviced from its offices in Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Luxembourg, the British Virgin Islands and Singapore.

Following the closure of the Dubai office, VP Bank intends to re-deploy resources in order to expand its existing banks in Zurich and Singapore.

In other developments, VP Bank is soon expected to announce a new chief executive, with its board of directors now in the final phase of finding a permanent replacement for Fredy Vogt, who has been interim CEO since August of last year.

Mr Vogt took over at the helm following the departure of Adolf Real, who reportedly resigned due to differences over the future strategy of the bank.