Information unaudited Information ungeprüftMore than the sum of its parts

“LLB takes over ZKB Österreich” was the headline in July 2024. What sounds simple in a headline is, in reality, a process that is anything but. Beyond the technical and legal challenges, it is above all marked by uncertainty – and yes, even a sense of melancholy – particularly for those being “taken over”. Yet this side of the story is rarely read or heard. We want to change that. Because this is the story of a merger that goes beyond facts and figures. It is the story of the employees of the former ZKB Österreich, who had to let go of their old identity in order to find a new sense of “us”. Told by one of them.

The summer of 2024 began with a sense of foreboding – a rumour. Between coffee breaks and emails, chat messages and corridor conversations, the first questions began to surface among the employees of Zürcher Kantonalbank Österreich AG: “Is it true?" “What does this mean for us?"

In July, the uncertainty was given a name: the change of ownership of Zürcher Kantonalbankʼs Austrian subsidiary was officially confirmed. At the turn of the year, the private bank based in Salzburg and Vienna would become a wholly owned subsidiary of Liechtensteinische Landesbank. The merger with Liechtensteinische Landesbank was set to mark the beginning of a new chapter in the successful growth story of the LLB Group.

A first start

In the weeks that followed, the first meetings took place. Managers travelled between locations, offering explanations, making the case, and sketching out the vision of a shared future. From a business and strategic perspective, it was seen as a “perfect match”. But for the roughly 120 employees of ZKB Österreich, a very different feeling prevailed: uncertainty.

Behind the scenes, integration was already being planned: IT systems, organisational structures, documentation, legal frameworks – everything had to be brought together. There was barely any time to process our own thoughts and emotions. It felt as though two films were playing simultaneously – one about processes and plans, the other about feelings and questions.

Encounters that build trust

Gradually, more and more people from both banks became involved. The faces were unfamiliar, the conversations tentative. Some looked for common ground, while others preferred to keep their distance. The first joint employee event was a cautious getting-to-know-you. Yet it was here – between small talk and scepticism – that something began which would later prove essential: the encounter. And with it, the beginning of understanding.

In April 2025, the employees of the Vienna branch of ZKB Österreich moved into the office building of Liechtensteinische Landesbank (Österreich) AG. Although still spatially separate – still seen as “another bank” – it was a physical step, symbolically reflecting what many were experiencing internally: the process of letting go of the old and cautiously arriving in the new.

Coming together and growing together

Something essential happened during this transitional period: people began to truly see one another. They discovered how closely aligned they were in their values – and how different in the ways they expressed them. They learned to navigate the friction, to shape something new – something shared – out of their differences.

The faces in the corridor became familiar, and the search for meeting rooms gave way to routine. The sound of the heavy entrance door at Hessgasse 1 faded from loud to quiet, the step into the lift at the start of the working day became second nature, and the break in the coffee room turned into a welcome change of scenery. The new logo on the façade of the historic building in Salzburgʼs Getreidegasse shines as if it had always been there. The brand world in “Zurich blue” fades into a cherished memory.

The new us

At the end of the 2025 financial year, a full year had passed since the change of ownership. But the creation of a new identity had only just begun. Over the course of the first quarter of 2026, many employees of the former ZKB Österreich will bid farewell. For those who remain, the new reality is only just beginning.

When two companies become one, it doesnʼt simply create a larger organisation. It is more than a merger of systems and processes. It is the coming together of people – with all their strengths, emotions, concerns, and potential. It is the conscious experience of change, and the effort to become not “the others” but “us”. And that is precisely what defines this new bank – or rather, what will define it: more than the sum of its parts.