AsianInvestor’s weekly roundup of job-hoppers, Mar 23
Coutts appoints chief risk officer for Asia after Britton exit
UK private bank Coutts & Co. made its second senior appointment announcement within days, naming Errol D’Souza from UBS Wealth Management as its new chief risk officer for Asia.
Based in Singapore, D’Souza will have responsibility for a 40-strong risk team spread across Singapore, Hong Kong and India. He had been chief risk officer for Singapore at UBS Wealth Management, so this represents a step up in terms of remit.
D’Souza reports regionally to Nick Pollard, chief executive of Coutts Asia, and functionally to John Savage, chief risk officer for Coutts International. He comes in to fill a vacancy after Coutts' former chief risk officer for Asia, Jill Britton, departed last November.
The announcement comes after AsianInvestor broke the news that Coutts had hired Timothy Chia as its Asia chairman. He, too, had previously worked with UBS until he left last September, largely in an advisory role as vice-chairman for its investment bank.
Prior to UBS, D’Souza was director and head of Pacific Rim Credit Risk (global wealth management) at Merrill Lynch in Hong Kong. He has also held risk management positions with ING in Hong Kong and Citigroup in Mumbai.
Separately, AsianInvestor understands that Terence Tan has quit Coutts, where he had been head of market specialists, to join boutique BSI as managing director and head of product strategy in Singapore.
Ranjit Khanna, global head of non-resident Indians South Asia, has assumed the role of head of products and services for Asia in the interim.
Deutsche’s Singh skips from corporate finance to private wealth
Deutsche Bank announced this week that it had appointed Amrit Singh from corporate finance as head of global South Asia in its private wealth management business, with immediate effect.
Based in London, Singh is now responsible for a team of more than 70 staff, close to half of whom are client advisers, spread across Hong Kong, Singapore, Geneva and the UK. They service the needs of ultra-high-net-worth clients of South Asian origin.
Singh, who reports directly to Asia-Pacific PWM head Ravi Raju, joined Deutsche in 1998 based in London and has worked mostly in corporate financing, most recently as managing director and head of M&A for Central and Eastern Europe. Prior to that he was head of M&A for India, Middle East and Africa.
He replaces Salman Mahdi, who becomes the firm’s global head of key clients, which includes entrepreneurs and business owners as well as ultra-high-net-worth individuals.
“His [Singh’s] move from corporate finance to PWM complements our one-bank strategy, under which we have encouraged greater convergence of Deutsche Bank’s corporate and investment bank and PWM businesses to better serve our ultra-high-net-worth clients.”
Trio of management appointments for Manulife
Manulife announced a trio of management appointments in Singapore in its finance and investment, underwriting and strategic initiatives divisions.
Leo Ng has been promoted to senior vice-president and chief financial and investment officer. He has worked with Manulife in a range of roles over 16 years, most recently as CFO for its Malaysia operations.
Prior to that he was corporate actuary of the Hong Kong operations and product manager for Manulife Investment Solutions in Hong Kong, where he was accountable for manufacturing, marketing and sales.
Carolyn Pritchard was also announced as vice-president for operations and chief underwriter, responsible for both new business and claims. For the past nine years she has been responsible for underwriting and claims for the US division of John Hancock.
And Nicola Vincent was announced as vice-president and head of the strategic initiatives office, where she will focus on raising the organisation’s execution capability as well as the delivery of strategic initiatives.
Alvarez and Marsal rehires Dubow as co-head for Asia
Professional services firm Alvarez and Marsal announced that it had appointed James Dubow as managing director and co-head of Asia.
Dubow returns to the firm’s Hong Kong office after five years, where he will be working closely with clients in Greater China and across Asia.
He had spent the last five years working as chief financial officer of Meiya Power Company, assisting with its growth strategy following its acquisition by a private equity consortium.
“His first-hand experience as a chief financial officer of a large energy company with pan-Asia operations is very relevant to many of the opportunities that we’re seeing with our clients,” says Oliver Stratton, managing director and co-head of Alvarez and Marsal, Asia.
“China has witnessed a rapid growth of inbound investments, and with a changing local and global macroeconomic environment, we’re seeing substantial demand for services: investors are placing an increasing emphasis on value creation in portfolio businesses; some businesses are in distress, with shareholders and creditors looking for support in leading restructurings and turnarounds; many Chinese businesses are starting to look at overseas M&A.”
Dubow previously worked at Alvarez and Marsal in the US and Asia. The company has been operating in Asia since 2003 and has offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing and Mumbai. It specializes in turnaround and interim management, performance improvement and business advisory services.
Other people moves reported by AsianInvestor in the past week:
Christof Kutscher leaves UBS Global Asset Management
Asia property fund president leaves LaSalle IM
Coutts set to unveil new Asia chairman
AllianceBernstein to tap senior trio for institutional sales