Aquila Capital, the alternative investment firm, has opened a new office in Singapore.

The branch is Aquila's first in Asia and is meant to function as centre point for Asian markets, where it hopes to establish a solid presence. The company has some $4 billion in assets under management and specialises in absolute return and real asset investment strategies including UCITS-compliant funds. 

The Singapore unit will be led by Chum Yong Quah as director for wholesale. Prior to Aquila, Chum worked for Fidelity as head of private banking and Southeast Asia development, where he led sales and client servicing operations in Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei and Indonesia. He also previously worked for DBS Asset Management, American Express and Standard Chartered. 

Aquila Capital was founded in 2001 and now has more than 80 investment specialists in its Luxembourg, Frankfurt and Zurich offices.