Coutts names Indonesia head, plans more hires

UK-based private bank Coutts has named Yee Chin Lit from Credit Suisse as Indonesia market head, the latest hire in the firm’s Southeast Asian build-out.

Based in Singapore, he joined as a managing director yesterday. The bank says it plans to add more employees to its Indonesian market team in coming months under Yee. No headcount has been decided upon as yet, with Yee understood to be working on details now.

“Southeast Asia is a strategic priority for Coutts, and in particular Indonesia,” says Ranjit Khanna, head of South Asia & Global NRI for the firm, in a statement, underlining its potential as one of the world's fastest growing nations in terms of private wealth.

Yee will focus on expanding the local client-base. A spokeswoman tells AsianInvestor there were a number of team leaders who reached out to clients in Indonesia from Singapore, but states that Yee's position is new.

He reports to Jacqueline Chua, managing director and market head for Southeast Asia. Chua joined in December 2012 from UBS to replace Manfred Liechti, who left Coutts in April 2012 after two years at the firm.

According to his LinkedIn profile, Liechti joined ANZ in May 2013 as a managing director in global private banking based in Singapore. Khanna had assumed the Southeast Asia head role until Chua joined.

Other recent Indonesian hires at Coutts include Watty Buwanawati, who joined in September 2013 from Deutsche Bank.

Credit Suisse is understood to have replaced Yee internally, although a spokeswoman for the bank declined to comment.

Yee previously worked at Credit Suisse, where he was the Indonesia sector head in Singapore, a position he held since April 2012. Before that, he held similar roles at private bank Clariden Leu – acquired by Credit Suisse in 2012 – and Deutsche Bank Private Wealth Management.