People Moves

Summary Of Global Moves In Wealth Management – November 2022

Editorial Staff 9 January 2023

Summary Of Global Moves In Wealth Management – November 2022

A roundup of all the moves and appointments during November last year.

Titan Asset Management appointed Alex Robinson as non-executive director. Robinson, who is chair of Earl Shilton Building Society, was previously group commercial director for Skipton Building Society for 10 years, and ran a portfolio of 11 companies where his roles included chair of the board and NED. Robinson is also a co-founder and chair of the Skipton and Ripon Enterprise Group, a network of individuals who provide free mentoring to small businesses and have, to date, assisted over 200 businesses.

Hargreaves Lansdown appointed Ziad Abou Gergi as head of the multi-manager team. Gergi, who has 20 years’ experience in the multi-manager area, joined the firm in December 2021. Prior to this, he headed Barclays’ high net worth multi-asset team.

UK-based Artorius Wealth engaged former UBS figure Jonathan Brown as senior advisor to work with the client teams to expand Artorius’ regional footprint. Based in the Northeast, Brown began his career in wealth management in early 1986. Over the course of some 36+ years he has worked for UK, American and Swiss organisations. For the last decade, Brown was a managing director running the UBS UK regional business.

RBC Brewin Dolphin appointed wealth advisors Edward Brown and Adam Gentry. They are based in the firm’s premises at 8 Waterloo Place in St James’s, London. Brown started his private banking career at Barclays in 2010, before joining Arbuthnot Latham in 2018. Gentry joined from Arbuthnot Latham & Co.

Accountants Saffery Champness named Shirley McIntosh as a partner in its Inverness office. McIntosh joined from RSM, where she was a partner and formerly head of tax for Scotland and Northern Ireland. 

First Sentier Investors, the Japan-owned organisation, appointed Kate Turner as global head of responsible investment. Sydney-based Turner replaced Will Oulton, who retired from the business at the end of the year.

The new RI hires include:
-- Finian Power, appointed head of ESG policy and regulation, was previously head of investment management in FSI’s Dublin office. 
-- Bjorn De Smedt, RI specialist. Sydney-based De Smedt is a corporate governance, climate change and sustainability specialist with over 18 years of experience in the financial services industry and a deep knowledge of ESG data and analytics. 
-- Rhys Foulkes, RI specialist, spent the past 15 years in investment management focusing on fixed income, most recently as senior credit analyst at FSI, developing a special interest in ESG. 
-- Belinda White, Sydney-based RI specialist, who has long been an advocate for increasing gender diversity in the workplace and championed financial gender equality, has spent the past 20 years working in external stakeholder engagement. 

LGT Wealth Management appointed three senior wealth management professionals to join the firm’s team working for international private clients. Dr Etienne Khayat joined as partner and wealth manager along with Jack Harris and Peter Talavera joining as wealth managers. They focus on working with Middle Eastern private clients.

Khayat joined from Credit Suisse Private Bank where he worked for over 10 years in London and Dubai, leading teams of RMs covering the region. Harris, who has more than 15 years of private banking and wealth management experience in the UK and Middle East, was based in the GCC region for over seven years. He joined from Standard Chartered Private Bank in Dubai. Talavera has over 15 years of investment experience, including 10 years in the UK managing ultra-high net worth clients from Africa and the Middle East. Previously he worked for Credit Suisse Private Bank as an investment consultant servicing clients from the Middle East, Africa and UK non-resident Indians (NRI). 

LGT Wealth Management also appointed Sajni Shah as a trainee wealth manager. Shah joined from Credit Suisse where she was a business analyst in the global markets technology team before moving into the private bank in 2017. 

TrustQuay, a tech provider to the corporate services, trust and alternative fund administration sector, appointed Heath Davies as non-executive chairman – a newly-created role. Davies, who chairs the board and work with Keith Hale and the management team, brought more than 25 years of senior software industry experience, in Software-as-a-Service and working within the private equity community. 

Standard Chartered appointed Mazen Fahad Al Bunyan as chief executive of its Saudi Arabia operations. Mazen Fahad Al Bunyan was previously the CEO of Alawwal Invest Company, the investment subsidiary of Riyadh-based Saudi British Bank.

Stefan Kreuzkamp stepped down as head of the investment division after 24 years at the DWS Group. The chief investment officer and the asset class officers report to CEO Stefan Hoops. Kreuzkamp agreed to the company's request to prematurely terminate his contract, which only runs until the beginning of 2024, to make room for the new management team. 

Björn Jesch became the global chief investment officer for DWS, while Fiona Bassett took over the newly-created systematic solutions and implementation platform. Vincenzo Vedda became responsible for the active division, in which DWS combined the active equity and fixed income (including cash) asset classes. 

Together, with the management team of the investment division, they report to Hoops. Additionally, Vincenzo Vedda took over Kreuzkamp's previous responsibilities on the management board of DWS Investment GmbH.

Kreuzkamp worked for DWS for 24 years, initially as portfolio manager for money market funds and later as head of fixed income and money market fund business and chief investment officer Europe. 

London law firm Payne Hicks Beach appointed Sara Morgan, a specialist in UK taxes of international high net worth individuals, as a partner in the private client team. Morgan, who joined from Fieldfisher LLP, has experience of advising on personal taxation, trust and estate planning for high net worth and ultra-high net worth individuals and trustees, particularly where there is an international dimension. She moved to Fieldfisher LLP with the Linklaters trusts team. Prior to this, she worked in other London private client teams, including Withers and Forsters. 

Private wealth and corporate services firm Praxis appointed business development specialist Dominic de Mariveles as commercial director. He has worked in business development and management consulting across a range of professional services for over 20 years. Business development director, Nathan Petty, also joined his team, moving from his previous client role at Praxis where he was responsible for a portfolio of clients.

Independent asset management boutique, Amati Global Investor, appointed Tom Whitfield as sales director. He has responsibility for clients in London and the broader South-East region. Whitfield joined from Sanlam Investments UK, where he was an account director with responsibility for wholesale and institutional clients across the London region.

Indosuez Wealth Management appointed Alexandre Ledouble as chief financial officer. Based in Paris, he reports to Jacques Prost, chief executive officer of Indosuez Wealth Management. Since 2019, within Crédit Agricole S.A. finance division, he has been responsible for the group's capital management and resolution planning.

Newton Investment Management, part of BNY Mellon Investment Management, appointed Judy Marlinski as the new chair of Newton Investment Management Limited (UK board) and Newton Investment Management North America, LLC (US board). Marlinski has served as an independent non-executive board member of the UK and US boards since July 2022. She succeeded Susan Noble as chair of the UK board, who stepped down after serving for eight years as a board member and five years as its chair. She has 35 years of experience in financial services, having held the CEO, president and COO positions within the investment management and wealth management industries of Fidelity Investments, including as president and CEO of Fidelity Investments Japan from 2011 to 2016 and president of Fidelity Institutional Asset Management from 2017 to 2020. 

Global corporate, private client and fund services provider, Hawksford made three promotions. Steve Spybey was promoted to the role of group chief operating officer, Caroline Morris was made group chief financial officer and Rachel Husbands is finance director for Jersey.

UK wealth manager Evelyn Partners appointed Annabel Kerley FCA as head of fraud and financial crime to strengthen its forensic services team. She works with David Alexander, head of forensic services, and John Holden, head of forensic technology. She is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants England and Wales and a former senior investigator at the Serious Fraud Office and Financial Conduct Authority. 

UK-based Jupiter Asset Management appointed Mathias Müller as head of international sales. The role is a new one for the firm. Based in Germany, and reporting to global head of distribution, Warren Tonkinson, Müller is responsible for the continued evolution and implementation of Jupiter’s growth strategy across the global wholesale channel, ex-UK. Prior to this role, Müller spent 20 years with Allianz Global Investors, where he became head of retail/wholesale for Europe in 2015. 

JTC, the provider of services for funds, corporates and private clients, appointed Chris Fry and Paul Fauvel as directors. They are based in Jersey. Fry has more than 20 years’ experience in working with private clients. Prior to joining JTC, he worked for over two decades at another Jersey-based service provider, ending his tenure as head of family office services. Fauvel has over 25 years’ experience working in the international financial services industry. 

Schroders Personal Wealth appointed Dominic Sheridan as CEO of its Authorised Corporate Director business. Sheridan is responsible for leading and developing the ACD. The ACD is responsible for the day-to-day governance of the Schroders Personal Wealth funds, ensuring that they are managed in line with their objectives, strategy and principles. Sheridan joined from Omnis Investments, where, as CEO, he established an asset management company with more than £10 billion ($11.9 billion) assets under management and a discretionary fund management business.  

Hargreaves Lansdown appointed Maike Currie as its new head of marketing campaigns and content. Currie joined from Fidelity International.


Carsten Bittner was appointed by ABN AMRO as chief innovation and technology officer and member of the executive board of ABN AMRO Bank NV. He is in the post for a four-year stint.

VP Bank (Switzerland) appointed Mara Harvey as its CEO. Thomas von Hohenhau left the executive board of the VP Bank Group. The firm regrouped the client solutions business unit. Von Hohenhau, who steered the transformation, decided to leave VP Bank once the change was completed.

Harvey holds a PhD in economics and has more than 20 years’ experience in the wealth management industry. She takes on responsibility for the Europe region which, alongside the Zurich location, also includes the Luxemburg location.

Evelyn Partners appointed Jonathan Thornton as a transaction services partner. He joined from Quantuma where he focused on providing financial due diligence to lower to mid-market private equity firms. Prior to that, he was a partner at PwC.  

Pretium, a specialised investment firm, appointed Rune Sanbeck as managing director, business development. Sanbeck leads fundraising, client support, and business development strategy for Europe-based allocators and institutional investors, primarily supporting Pretium's real estate and private credit offerings.

Glyn Barker, the former PricewaterhouseCoopers figure whom Quilter named as its chair in May, stepped down from the role for personal reasons. Having previously undertaken this role with a view to handing over to Barker, the board said Ruth Markland was to chair the business, and Tim Breedon appointed the senior independent director.

CCLA Investment Management, a UK charity investment manager, made two new hires to bolster its sustainability team and extend its activities to drive change. In her new role as consultant – modern slavery, Dame Sara Thornton was appointed to bring her experience and expertise to CCLA’s Find it, Fix it, Prevent it initiative to tackle modern slavery in investee companies’ supply chains. She had a career with the police and later served a three-year term until April 2022 as the UK independent anti-slavery commissioner. She is also a professor of practice in modern slavery policy at Nottingham University Rights Lab, where she focuses on research in the area of prevention, business responses, supply chains, and the role of the financial sector in tackling modern slavery.

Dr Martin Buttle also joined the organisation. He is tasked with leading CCLA’s ‘Better Work’ stream which focuses on ensuring fair and sustainable working conditions for companies’ labour forces in order to align them with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. Dr Buttle joined from responsible investment charity, ShareAction.

Brown Advisory added two London-based analysts to its global sustainable fixed income team. Yacine El-Mohri joined from BNP Paribas where he was a financials credit trading desk analyst, specialising in European banks and insurers. Eriko Miyazaki-Ross joined from Global Evolution.

Hargreaves Lansdown appointed Ruchir Rodrigues as chief client and commercial officer. Rodrigues came from Barclays’ next-generation commerce platform and the consumer business. 

White Oak Group appointed Ben Hayward as the head of distribution, Europe, excluding Germany, Austria and Switzerland, and the Americas. Based in London, Hayward has seven years’ experience as a distribution and investor relations figure working in asset management. He previously worked for UTI International, India’s oldest asset manager.

Titanbay, a private market investment platform for investors, private banks and asset managers, appointed Merrick McKay, head of European private equity for abrdn, to join its investment advisory board, to support fund selection.

UBS said Damian Vogel would be a member of UBS's group executive board at the beginning of May and become group chief risk officer, after current CRO Christian Bluhm decided to step down. Vogel is currently chief risk officer for UBS’s Global Wealth Management business.

Bluhm, who has been group chief risk officer since 2016, will be focusing on his photography business and pursue opportunities in academia. 

Lombard Odier appointed Geoffroy Vermeire as managing director for the group’s private banking activities in Belgium. Based in Brussels; he reports to Stephane Herrmann, chief executive officer at Lombard Odier (Europe) SA and Gérard Felley, limited partner and region head for France, Belgium and Luxembourg for private clients. Vermeire, 58, has more than 35 years of experience in the banking sector. Before joining Lombard Odier, he was chief commercial officer and member of the management committee at Van Lanschot Kempen Belgium from 2014, where he led the development of commercial activities. 

Kingsley Napley, a UK-based law firm, appointed Charles Richardson as a partner to lead the firm’s multi-disciplinary landed estates practice. Richardson was previously at Hunters Law, where he became a partner in 2018.

Titan Wealth Holdings, a fund, wealth and asset management business, appointed two senior personnel to join its portfolio and commercial management teams. Tom Macpherson joined Titan in the newly-created role of head of portfolio management. He previously worked for 12 years at LGT UK Wealth Management.

Rosanna Holt joined Titan as head of commercial operations, overseeing the creation and implementation of commercial strategies across the group. 

US-based Capital Group appointed Scott Steele in the newly-created role of head of fixed income business development for Asia and Europe. Steel reports to Alexandra Haggard, head of product and investment services for Asia and Europe.

Nuveen, an investment manager, appointed Harry Bush as director, covering UK wealth clients, alongside Alex De Stefano. He joined from Allianz Global Investors where he was a director for the UK Wholesale market. Previously, he worked in business development and sales at Cambridge Associates and Neptune Investment Management.

The Global Returns Project, an initiative helping investors, asset managers and businesses embrace regenerative finance, appointed Mike Berners-Lee to join its advisory board. Berners-Lee, who specialises in carbon footprinting, brought in his expertise in the climate action sphere.

London-based law firm Farrer & Co appointed Jennifer Ridgway, a specialist in landed estates, tax, and trusts, as a partner in the firm’s private client team. Ridgway joined Farrer & Co from Michelmores where she was also a partner.

Vistra, the fund and corporate service provider firm, appointed Simon Webster as its new chief executive. He took the helm from Alan Brown, who stepped down. With more than 30 years of experience, Webster was most recently group CEO of CPA Global, the provider of intellectual property software, services, data and analytics for corporates and law firms. Brown was named CEO in April 2019.

Crestbridge appointed Laura Parkes as a director in its family office services team. Jersey-based Parkes, who leads on family office structures administered in Jersey for clients in the Americas, Canada and the UK, also supports business development efforts in the Americas, including working with Crestbridge Fiduciary, the firm’s US joint venture with Willow Street.

Parkes has more than 20 years’ experience in the private client trust industry. Prior to joining Crestbridge, Parkes worked at an international bank where she was responsible for a team of Jersey-based trust relationship managers who administered a variety of structures providing intergenerational planning for ultra-high net worth clients. 

Specialist private client consultancy The Burnside Partnership promoted Alison Craggs, a Legal 500 2023 “Rising Star,” to partner. Craggs has more than 15 years’ experience in private client law, specialising in drafting tax-efficient wills, preparing and registering powers of attorney, and administering estates. Beyond her core private client specialism, Craggs is also experienced in working with clients affected by dementia and disabilities.

International law firm Withers teamed up with Tareq Hawasli, a businessman and advisor working in the Gulf, to launch Withers Hakawati, a new initiative to advise families and family-run firms in the Gulf Co-operation Council region. Withers Hakawati is led by Hawasli, a consigliere to prominent GCC families with an extensive track record of helping them achieve their business and personal objectives in the US, the UK and the GCC.

EFG International hired a new head of its legal and compliance operations, choosing a different person from the original candidate who took on a strategic role on its board. The Switzerland-based firm also made a number of other leadership changes.

Vassiliki Dimitrakopoulou became the new global head of legal and compliance – subject to approval from the Swiss financial regulator. Dimitrakopoulou performed this role on an interim basis since April 2022. The appointment took place because Maria Leistner, due to take this post last November, was instead tasked with focusing on a “more strategic role” as a board member. 

Ioanna Archimandriti, global head of human resources, was appointed as a member of EFG’s global business committee. Archimandriti, who is based in Geneva, reports to CEO Giorgio Pradelli. Before joining EFG, Archimandriti spent 17 years at Eurobank, Greece, as head of transformation as well as serving in various other senior strategy and governance roles. 

Calculus, a provider of tax-efficient investments, appointed Elizabeth Klein as investment director. Klein is a seasoned investment management, direct investment, and deal origination expert. Klein, who joined from Klein-Edmonds Associates, which she founded in 2015, has experience in portfolio management, bringing a commercial mindset to small business strategy.

CG Asset Management appointed Clemmie Vaughan as a non-executive director on the board. Vaughan has an asset management track record of investing globally across equities, bonds, real estate, digital currencies, credit, and gold.

International law firm Withers appointed new partner Nicolette Bostock. Bostock, who is based in London, joined from immigration boutique Laura Devine Immigration.
 


North America
Glenmede said that Susan Mucciarone, executive director of private wealth, had moved to a strategic advisory role. Philadelphia-based Thomas Melcher, director of family wealth and the New York Metro region, is subsequently leading the PWG. Mucciarone joined Glenmede in 2010. Among her achievements was establishing Glenmede’s Delaware Trust Company. 

Melcher, who joined Glenmede in 2018 after a career at PNC, previously served as chief investment officer for the asset management group and managing executive of Hawthorn, PNC Family Wealth.

Cresset Partners, the US wealth manager, hired former Aon Investments senior figure Shari Young Lewis as managing director, private funds group. Lewis has more than 20 years of experience building private equity investment programs for institutional investors. Most recently she was a partner in the private equity practice at Aon Investments, where she focused on buyout, growth equity, venture capital, private credit, and infrastructure investments. 

Nilsine Partners, an independent registered investment advisor, said Dan Weeks, CFP®, CFBA, CFWA had joined the firm as senior advisor, managing director. He was accompanied by Jenny Boyle, client relationship manager. They operate from the firm’s headquarters in Greenwood Village, Colorado.

Williams Jones Wealth Management, an RIA with offices in New York and Palm Beach, appointed Brandon Reid as managing director as part of its strategic expansion plans in Florida and across the Southeast. Reid has nearly 40 years of banking and financial services experience. He previously served as MD, senior account advisor and manager of the Palm Beach office for Bessemer Trust before retiring in 2019. 

PNC Asset Management Group named Marc Dizard as its chief investment strategist. Dizard, who has more than 15 years of experience, oversees and drives the investment strategy and vision for PNC AMG. Most recently, Dizard served as regional investment manager for PNC Private Bank's Midwest region. 

Newton Investment Management, part of BNY Mellon Investment Management, appointed Judy Marlinski as its new chair of Newton Investment Management Limited (UK board) and Newton Investment Management North America, LLC (US board). Marlinski had served as an independent non-executive board member of the UK and US boards since July 2022. She succeeded Susan Noble as chair of the UK board, who stepped down after serving eight years as a board member and five years as its chair.

Dynasty Financial Partners appointed Bob Shea, the chief executive and chief investment officer of FCF Advisors, as chief investment strategist. Shea leads Dynasty’s investment committee, provides top-down asset allocation insights and guidance and leads investment manager selection. Shea reports to Ed Swenson, Dynasty’s chief operating officer. Before FCF Advisors, Shea started his career at Goldman Sachs where he worked from 1991 to 2004, reaching the level of partner, co-head of cash equity trading.


John Piper joined Foundation Wealth Management, an Ameriprise independent practice, a team based in Bakersfield, California.

Millennium Trust Company promoted Dan Laszlo to chief executive. Laszlo succeeded retiring CEO Gary Anetsberger, who continued to serve Millennium Trust as executive chairman. Laszlo joined the firm almost seven years ago as chief financial officer. 

Ledgex, a US-based data solutions firm, bolstered its leadership team. It appointed Nicole Eberhardt to the CEO post, and added industry veteran Wendy McCoy as chief strategy officer. Eberhardt, previously CSO of Ledgex, has over two decades of experience as a financial technologist and entrepreneur. McCoy is the former vice president of product management services for ECI, a provider of managed services, technology solutions and business transformation to the financial services sector. 

Bank of America appointed Julia Shin as the products and platforms – ESG integration and innovation executive for Merrill Lynch Wealth Management. Previously, Shin was managing director of impact investing at Enterprise Community Partners, a national non-profit organization. She brings over 26 years of experience in corporate and investment banking amongst other fields.

Raymond James welcomed financial advisors Steven Schmitt and Terence Belfor to Raymond James & Associates (RJA) – the firm’s employee advisor channel – in New York and Beverly Hills, California. Joining the advisor duo were senior investment portfolio analyst Valerie Vinbaytel, with 12 years of industry experience, practice business manager Cassandra Biehl, with three years of experience and practice marketing associate Anthony Corcella.

Raymond James welcomed financial advisor Adrian John to Raymond James Financial Services. John is located in Seattle, Washington, where he is joined by client services manager Katherine Bowers. He began his career in finance in 2010 as an advisor at Edward Jones.

The firm also welcomed former Merrill Lynch financial advisors Abbie Osterbur and Niralee Patel to the firm’s employee advisor channel in Champaign, Illinois.

At Merrill Lynch, the team oversaw more than $160 million in assets for a variety of clients, including corporate retirement plans, families and women investors. Their team, which includes senior client service associate Erika Burian, operates as Osterbur Patel Wealth Management of Raymond James.

CrowdStreet Advisors, a boutique alternative investment manager concentrating on commercial real estate, appointed John Norris as director of private wealth, responsible for sales and distribution of the firm’s funds. Prior to joining CrowdStreet Advisors, Norris spent 17 years at Black Creek Group, a private real estate manager. 

Bank of America appointed Harsh Agarwal as a managing director and family office strategist. Agarwal’s role is a newly created one. Agarwal, who lives in Dallas, Texas, reports to Elizabeth Thiessen, head of family office solutions at Bank of America Private Bank. Prior to his new role, Agarwal was a vice president and fiduciary wealth advisor at Bernstein Private Wealth Management.

Los Angeles Capital Management, a global quantitative equity firm, promoted Dr Edward Rackham to co-chief investment officer, and Brad Rowe to chief research officer. 

Dr Rackham has been at the firm for more than 11 years, working with the portfolio management, research, and trading departments. Dr Rackham serves with Hal Reynolds, as co-chief investment officer. Prior to joining the firm, Dr Rackham spent six years at Wilshire Associates researching and developing risk and portfolio analytics tools. 

Brad Rowe, who joined Los Angeles Capital Management in 2007, has worked with the factor research group defining, constructing, and evaluating the factors used in the Dynamic Alpha Model. 

Procyon Partners appointed former Wells Fargo advisor Brian Turner as a private wealth advisor. Turner was joined by Selena Kemp, senior client service associate, and Zamena Bridglal, client service associate. They operate from Fulton, Maryland.

At Wells Fargo, Turner was a senior financial advisor, overseeing $247 million in client assets. He began his career more than 15 years ago as a financial advisor at UBS Financial Services and later at Wells Fargo Advisors. 

Heritage Trust Company, a subsidiary of Argent Financial Group, announced that Jordan Dean had earned her certified trust and fiduciary advisor designation and had been promoted to assistant vice president, relationship management associate. Dean, who reports directly to Heritage Trust president Michael Romero, had previously served as a relationship management associate since joining Heritage Trust in 2017. 

Rockefeller Capital Management brought a Texas-based firm – The Maxwell Group – into its embrace. Led by managing director and private advisor Kyle Maxwell, a 17-year industry veteran, the group joined from Merrill Lynch. They report to Michael Armondo, Central Division director, Rockefeller.

Journey Strategic Wealth appointed Justin Starnes as its chief growth officer to lead the firm’s advisor partnerships and mergers and acquisitions. Starnes began his career working in alternative investments at Goldman Sachs. Most recently, he was the founder and CEO of Antrim Bay & Co, providing consulting services and M&A guidance to financial advisors, in addition to capital sourcing for private investments. 

Raymond James welcomed financial advisor Blaine Franklin to Raymond James Financial Services. Franklin joined Raymond James as the owner of Blaine P Franklin Financial Services. He is accompanied by client service associate Heather Franklin and office manager Kristin Rubin. Previously, they managed approximately $195 million in client assets at Edward Jones.

Sanctuary Wealth opened an East Coast office – operated by Quorum Private Wealth. Quorum is led by managing partners Mike Barry and Kelly Milligan. Heading up the New York City metro office is Dylan O’Shea, an 11-year Merrill Lynch veteran.

Withers expanded its Boston-based intellectual property and venture capital team, adding corporate partner Alex Khalarian. Khalarian has experience with transactional matters, particularly with respect to mergers and acquisitions, as well as advising clients on general corporate matters. 

Asia-Pacific
First Sentier Investors, the Japan-owned organisation, appointed Kate Turner as global head of responsible investment. Sydney-based Turner raplaced Will Oulton, who retired from the business.

First Sentier also made four other RI appointments:
-- Finian Power, head of ESG policy and regulation. Power was previously head of investment management in FSI’s Dublin office.

-- Bjorn De Smedt, RI specialist. Sydney-based De Smedt is a corporate governance, climate change and sustainability specialist with over 18 years of experience in the financial services industry with a deep knowledge of ESG data and analytics. 

-- Rhys Foulkes, RI specialist. Foulkes has spent the past 15 years in investment management focused on fixed income, most recently as senior credit analyst at FSI, developing a special interest in ESG. Foulkes is based in London.

-- Belinda White, RI specialist. Sydney-based White has long been an advocate for increasing gender diversity in the workplace and championing financial gender equality. She has spent the past 20 years working in external stakeholder engagement. For the past three years, she was senior communications manager at FSI.

Bank J Safra Sarasin appointed a group of former Julius Baer bankers, with a number working in its Singapore-based advisory unit. It named Michael Leutwyler as managing director, client advisory. Leutwyler, who spent eight years at Zurich-listed Julius Baer, also carried out stints at Barclays, Deutsche Bank, Merrill Lynch and UBS.

Other appointees included Rupesh Singh as a managing director in the advisory unit – he is also a former Julius Baer senior advisory, who worked at ANZ, HSBC, Citi and ABN AMRO.

Other former Julius Baer figures joining J Safra Sarasin included Ashvin Kumar as executive director and Nitin Sachdeva as director in Singapore. 

Morgan Stanley in Australia appointed new co-heads for its wealth management business after former head figure Ian Chambers retired earlier in November 2022. The new heads, Matthew Nicholls and Rebecca Hill, have been with the bank for 15 and five years, respectively.

Hill is a managing director and heads Morgan Stanley at Work for Asia-Pacific, its employee solutions unit. She previously headed corporate development and investor relations for the once-listed engineering services business UGL, which was acquired by CIMIC in 2016. Nicholls is an executive director and head of investment solutions.

Deutsche Bank appointed former JP Morgan senior figure Esther Wong in the newly-formed role of managing director and group head of a wealth management team in Southeast Asia. Based in Singapore, she reports to Anurag Mahesh, vice chairman and interim head, IPB Southeast Asia. Before this, Wong spent more than 10 years at JP Morgan where she focused on the UHNW client segment. Prior to that, she spent five years at UBS.

HSBC appointed Ashmita Acharya as head of wealth and personal banking, Singapore. She replaced  Anurag Mathur who pursued external opportunities. Acharya joined from Citibank where she built 20 years of international banking experience. 

Singlife appointed Dr Allen Kuo as its group deputy chief investment officer. Kuo oversees the implementation of Singlife’s sustainable investment strategy. He has two decades of investment and risk management experience across multiple asset classes – specialising in quantitative finance and investment risk – accumulated from senior stints in the US, China and Hong Kong. Prior to joining Singlife, Kuo was the director and deputy chief risk officer of University of California’s Regents Chief Investment Office, the pension and endowment arm of the institution.

Citi Private Bank appointed Milton Yau, a team leader in its high net worth team in Hong Kong. (The HNW head for Hong Kong is Keith Lee.) Prior to this, he worked for 11 years at UBS, where he was a client advisor.

Vontobel’s Asia wealth management chief executive, Georg von Wattenwyl, relocated to the Alpine state as part of a change in how it operates structured products in Asia. Von Wattenwyl was appointed head of structured solutions financial institutions, adding to his role as Asia wealth management CEO and Singapore CEO. He was due to return to Switzerland towards the latter part of last year. Von Wattenwyl was based in Asia for four years; he worked for Vontobel for 24 years.

Manoj Ramarao, managing director and head of global South Asia at EFG Bank, left the Switzerland-listed business after a stint of three years. He is based in Singapore. For more than 11 years Ramarao was executive director, and team head for sub-continent and NRI Southeast Asia at Bank of Singapore. Before this, he was an RM in the NRI space for ABN AMRO, in Singapore, and spent a year before that at Citibank in India.

A former senior Credit Suisse and Willis Towers Watson figure, Peter Ryan-Kane, joined CEO advisory business Teneo as senior advisor in its Asia-Pacific practice which focuses on the financial sector.

Ryan-Kane, who is based in Hong Kong, is the founder of PeRK Advisory and was formerly head of portfolio advisory, Asia-Pacific at Willis Towers Watson. Before that, he served as head of distribution and product management, Asia-Pacific at Credit Suisse. 

Schroders unveiled senior leadership appointments in its Asia-Pacific business. CEO Susan Soh retired at the end of 2022 after a 17-year period at the UK-listed firm.

Amy Cho, chief executive for Hong Kong and deputy head for Asia-Pacific, left the firm after a period of four years. She pursued interests outside the firm. Chris Durack took over from Soh. Durack rejoined Schroders after having previously worked there in various roles for 10 years. He was CEO for Hong Kong, chief executive for the firm in Australia and most recently, Asia-Pacific co-head. Durack is based in Singapore. Gopi Mirchandani, CEO and head of the Asia client group at NN Investment Partners, was appointed CEO, Hong Kong, reporting to Durack, She also took on the newly-created role of head of strategy, Asia-Pacific. 

BNY Mellon Investment Management appointed former senior Invesco figure Sharon Ko as head of intermediary business for its Hong Kong retail distribution channel. She reports to Dominic Wong, head of intermediary, Greater China. Ko has more than 15 years of financial services industry experience. She was most recently head of retail distribution, Hong Kong at Invesco. Prior to this, she was associate director of intermediary business at Fidelity International, associate vice president at BlackRock and sales manager at Allianz Global Investors.


Law firm Karas in association with Mishcon de Reya appointed new partner Jonathan Mok and his team to its Hong Kong office. Mok is an established senior lawyer, known for his work in high-profile family disputes, criminal defence and regulatory compliance practices. Mok was joined by Carmen Cheng as special counsel, along with associate Sarah Wong and legal assistant Angela Li.

Credit Suisse in Asia made a number of senior management changes. Even so, Benjamin Cavalli remained as chief executive for Hong Kong in addition to his role as Asia-Pacific wealth management head and APAC sustainability leader. 

Balakrishnan Kunnambath, market group head NRI, was appointed vice chairman and strategic client lead for Southeast Asia and India, to focus on strategic clients' coverage for SEA and India.

Puneet Matta was named market group head of wealth management India and NRI. Based in Singapore, he reports to Matta to ensure connectivity and collaboration between the offshore and onshore business.

Dominique Boer, market group head for Singapore, took on an expanded role to oversee and manage the Singapore booking centre which covers the account management team, customer care centre and small client unit. 

Marcus Slöör, market group head for the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam, took on the additional responsibility of managing key strategic initiatives for WM APAC.

Johanes Oeni, market group head for Indonesia, took on an expanded role to oversee and manages the Malaysia market. Joyce Low, market leader for Malaysia, reports to Oeni.

In addition to his role of market group head of Hong Kong, Rickie Chan became CEO of the Credit Suisse Hong Kong branch. Chan oversees and manages the APAC Switzerland teams (direct and shared relationships). Christian Frie, market leader APAC Switzerland, reports to Chan.

Martin Loh, market group head for China II, took on an expanded role to oversee and manages the Shanghai branch as it consolidates oversight of the Greater China bank branch and rep offices under one leadership. Rick Meng, Shanghai branch manager, reports to Loh. In addition to his role as co-head of advisory and sales, Claude Harbonn is leading a new function called “Core Clients.”

Jacky Ang was appointed head of WM Singapore location and the senior manager for wealth management under the MAS Individual Accountability and Conduct regime. 

Julius Baer added to its onshore India team and brought in Akul Juneja as managing director and senior advisor, who is based in New Delhi. It also made a number of other hires who report to Juneja. Juneja reports to Vrinda Mahadevia, head of wealth management, Julius Baer India. The other hires – senior relationship managers – included Dhanmesh Tripathi, Abhishek Chopra, Munish Kumar and Sourabh Aggarwal. 

Ranjit Khanna, the head of South Asia and chief executive of the Singapore branch at Union Bancaire Privée, stepped down from the group.
 
UBP has made two senior leadership appointments in Asia: Ivan Wong joined UBP as region head for North Asia and CEO of the Hong Kong branch. Wong has 35 years of experience in the financial services industry. 

Eric Morin was appointed as Southeast Asia region head and CEO of the Singapore branch. Morin has 10 years of experience in Southeast Asia leadership roles.

Chris Cummings, chief executive of the UK Investment Association (IA) and Sally Wong, chief executive officer of the Hong Kong Investment Funds Association, were elected as chair and deputy chair, respectively, of the International Investment Funds Association board.

Sun Life Hong Kong Limited, part of Sun Life, appointed Eleonore Chow as general manager for its agency business. Chow brought almost 30 years of experience in the insurance industry to her new role. Prior to joining the firm, she was chief partnership distribution officer at AXA. Chow also worked in various senior positions at major insurance companies.

RBC Wealth Management appointed Kamran (Kam) Azim as chief operating officer for the Asia wealth management business. He is based in Singapore. The role is a new one at the bank. Azim reports to Terence Chow, CEO, RBC Wealth Management Asia. Since joining the bank in 2008, Azim has worked in various capacities with RBC – in finance, capital markets, private banking, products and strategy. Prior to his new role, Azim was vice president and head of global credit and cash management, based in Toronto, Canada. 

A media report said that three Pakistan-focused bankers, based in Singapore, had left Credit Suisse. They are executive director Rai-Rummaan Kharal – the team head, director Haroon Tufail and vice president Shahid Qazi.

M&G Real Estate, part of M&G Investments, appointed Regina Lim as director, head of property research for Asia. Lim works with Jing Dong (JD) Lai, chief executive and chief investment officer of M&G Real Estate Asia, Jose Pellicer, global head of investment strategy and Richard Gwilliam, global head of research. Lim joined from JLL, where she was head of strategic advisory and capital market research in Asia-Pacific and Southeast Asia. 

Capital Group appointed Scott Steele in the newly-created role of head of fixed income business development for Asia and Europe. Steel reports to Alexandra Haggard, head of product and investment services for Asia and Europe. Carrying more than 30 years’ industry experience, Steele has been global head of fixed income client portfolio management at Janus Henderson Investors. 

Hang Seng Bank in Hong Kong elevated Saw Say Pin, chief financial officer, to be an executive director at the lender.

Comgest, a Paris-based asset manager focused on long-term responsible investment in quality-growth equities, appointed Heyang Ping as an analyst, based in Tokyo. The move adds to the team involved with the Comgest Growth Japan fund. Ping, with more than 10 years’ experience covering Japanese stocks, is based in the firm’s Tokyo office alongside Comgest’s 13-strong local employee base. Ping was previously an equity analyst with Sparx Asset Management’s Tokyo team, where she contributed to their SMID oriented, bottom-up sustainable growth portfolios.

LaSalle Investment Management appointed Matthew Jianguo Yao, an investment manager in the Greater China market, as head of RMB strategy. He joined from PGIM.

Integral, a tech provider in the foreign exchange market, appointed Judy Goh as managing director and head of sales for Asia-Pacific. Based in Singapore, Goh brings 16 years’ experience in the foreign exchange market. Most recently, Goh was vice president of KX’s Trading Solutions in Asia.

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