The transfer seeks to enable the alternatives business to leverage the scale and capabilities of HSBC Global Asset Management.

HSBC has transferred day-to-day management of its alternatives business to HSBC Global Asset Management, appointing Steven Ward as chief executive and Edmund Stokes as chairman of HSBC Alternative Investments.

Both roles were previously held by Henry Lee, an HSBC spokesperson confirmed to this publication. Lee will continue to lead the alternative investment group within HSBC Private Bank, in addition to his role as global head of discretionary. In these roles, he will work with HSBC Asset Management to manage the delivery of alternatives and discretionary products to private banking clients.

Ward, who has been with the bank since 2004, has served as HSBC GAM’s global head of alternative product since 2012, according to his LinkedIn profile. Stokes was previously global head of product at HSBC GAM.

HSBC said in a statement to investors that the new structure will allow the bank to further build on the strengths of its alternatives business, by continuing to provide products and services - including real estate, hedge funds and private equity investments - to clients of HSBC Private Bank. 

“This will further enhance the group’s overall asset management capabilities and increase the range of alternatives investment products available to HSBC’s institutional clients,” HSBC said.

It added that there will be no change to the products or services provided to private banking clients and that alternatives will continue to be distributed to private investors through the private bank and asset management partnership.

HSBC recently reported that its global private banking business generated a pre-tax profit of $151 million in the third quarter of 2016, up from $81 million a year earlier and bouncing back from a loss of $667 million in the second quarter of this year. For the first nine months of 2016, however, the pre-tax figure at the private bank was a loss of $406 million.