Hammer falls on fundsÆ retail teams

Layoffs continue to plague the asset management industry in Asia, but the most vulnerable area appears to be individuals running retail distribution efforts.Many asset managers spent the past few years building up retail businesses, in pursuit of high-fee business chasing bull markets. Providers traditionally in the institutional area -- among them Goldman Sachs, State Street Global Advisors and UBS Global Asset Management -- created product and distribution for Asia's retail market, …