Societe Generale Private Banking has made four senior appointments in a bid to strengthen the commercial structure it has developed to serve wealthy clients in the Middle East and Africa.

Eddy Abramo has been appointed global market manager for clients in the Middle East - a role in which he will lead and coordinate the firm's commercial teams in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Geneva, London, Luxembourg and Monaco.  

Abramo joined SGPB in Paris as a discretionary portfolio manager in 1997 and was named chief executive of Societe Generale Private Banking Middle East in 2009. He retains this position alongside his new role.

Meanwhile, Jean-Paul Rame has become global market manager for Africa - a segment with "significant growth potential", the firm said. He also retains his existing role as manager of the African desk for Societe Generale Private Banking Switzerland.

Additionally, Gonzague de Cerval has been named head of the Middle East and Africa desk at Societe Generale Bank & Trust in Luxembourg. After having joined Societe Generale Bank & Trust (Luxembourg) as a private banker in charge of high net worth clients from Greece, the Levant region and the Middle East, de Cerval moved to Societe Generale Private Banking Middle East in 2007 -  initially in Dubai, where he was closely involved in the creation of the representative office in Abu Dhabi. He became head of the Abu Dhabi office in July 2010, but has now been succeeded in this role by Nicolas Métivier.

Métivier started his career at ABN Amro in 2004 and joined Societe Generale Bank & Trust in Luxembourg as a private banker responsible for HNW clients from Greece and the Middle East in 2007. The firm said he has been closely involved in developing its Middle Eastern client base in Luxembourg.

Societe Generale Private Banking is the wealth management arm of Societe Generale, with €88.01 billion ($112.3 billion) in assets under management at the end of September.