The Commonwealth Bank of Australia has acquired Swan & Co Wealth Management from Singapore’s Kim Eng Securities. Terms of the deal were not ...

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia has acquired Swan & Co Wealth Management from Singapore’s Kim Eng Securities. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The Singapore-based business is four years old and was majority-owned by Kim Eng, and 20 per cent held by Khing Go and Cliff Go, the two principals. The business has mostly focused on Indonesia and has targeted very rich families. CBA is expected to use the purchase to increase its business in Indonesia and to leverage the brand in other parts of South-east Asia. CBA has proven very successful in onshore private banking in Australia in the past two years, and has run a private client franchise in Asia that caters to expatriate Australians and those Asians with a connection to Australia. This business, which is run out of Hong Kong and Singapore, has been based around multi-currency mortgage lending, deposit-taking and the sale of Eurobonds. "We've been looking at expanding our private banking in Asia," says Stephen Holden, Asian regional general manager of CBA, in a local interview. "We had the choice to grow organically, or via the right sort of acquisition. This deal has allowed us to leapfrog into a more meaningful private banking presence."