Around 20 bankers have left RBS Coutts in Singapore, this publication's sister website, WealthBriefingAsia, has exclusively revealed.

The team, led by Raj Srirem is focused on Indian clients and is thought to be joining Lugano-headquartered BSI, a bank that former RBS Coutts Asia head, Hanspeter Bruner is known to be joining next March.

Along with the bankers, a number of infrastructure staff have left RBS Coutts.

Nick Pollard, the recently appointed head of RBS Coutts in Asia told this publication that the departures are the last of that will be seen in the foreseeable future. “We’ve seen the end of it now and we’re now concentrating on our ambitious hiring strategy. We’re very much positioning for growth and we have plans for well over 200 people to be joining us in the next year,” he said.

“In the scheme of things the recent departures are not a problem for us and we’re pleased to say that we’ve seen 700 applications for positions in the next few months.”

The staff departures account for around 15 per cent of the total RBS Coutts staff in Asia and centre are mainly from one team. There have been no losses in Hong Kong.

In September, WealthBriefing reported that BSI Bank Limited Singapore, has appointed a former top executive at Coutts’ international business, Hanspeter Brunner, to head its operations in Asia from March next year. Mr Brunner recently left RBS Coutts. Mr Brunner had been chief executive of RBS Coutts Bank, becoming CEO of Coutts International in 2002.

Under the changes, RBS Coutts is concentrating, although not exclusively, on hiring bankers and teams focused on Indonesia, India, Taiwan, The Philippines and China.

“Coutts is very much in the RBS group’s growth strategy and Asia is a significant part of that as evidenced by my recent appointment,” Mr Pollard said.

Staff turnover at RBS Coutts in Asia has been relatively low. Around 25 per cent of current staff have been at the firm for over ten years.