Citigroup has hired Paul Hodes as Asia Pacific head of traditional managed investment products for its wealth management business and head of wealth management products for the region’s consumer bank, as part of a bid to get greater exposure to the region’s wealthy.

Hodes was previously head of the group’s Malaysian retail bank and in his new role will lead sales of products such as fixed-income and equities to the Asia-Pacific region’s high net worth clientele. He will report to both Debashish Dutta and Jonathan Larsen, regional heads of investments for wealth management and consumer banking, respectively.

Prior to his role in Malaysia, Hodes was based in Singapore as Citibank’s Asia Pacific regional wealth management business development head, and has formerly worked at Fidelity Investments and Morgan Guaranty Trust.

Along with a number of other local Asian and Western banks, Citigroup is looking to tap into to the potential vast wealth of the fast-growing region. For example, in China alone, the wealth management market is expected to rise to as large as $700 billion by 2014, according to data issued by Celent. The non-resident Indian grouping, another important client segment for wealth managers, is also growing rapidly.

Back in its domestic US market, Citi Private Bank has been making a raft of appointments to boost its ultra high net worth business, among others.

Citigroup Asia-Pacific’s wealth management unit has $165 billion in assets under management.