EIP hires Tang as head of business development
Hong Kong-based asset manager Enhanced Investment Products (EIP) has hired Rui Tang as its new head of business development, AsianInvestor can confirm.
Tang joined last month to lead the firm’s growth strategy including hedge and long-only business lines. She is tasked with devising and executing the marketing strategy for existing products; developing and launching new products; and evaluating business JV opportunities.
Tang reports directly to CEO Toby Bland. Her appointment – which brings to 15 the number of EIP staff – comes after the departure of Stewart Aldcroft, the firm’s previous head of business development for beta products.
Aldcroft joined EIP in May 2010 to develop its range of exchange-traded funds. However, it is understood he became frustrated – along with other ETF issuers – about how long it was taking Hong Kong to approve swaps-based versions of such products.
Subsequently Aldcroft joined Citi last month as managing director and senior adviser for investor services, reporting to David Russell, Asia-Pacific head of securities and fund services. As Chris Ryan's replacement, he is tasked with developing new initiatives and expanding the regional client base.
An EIP spokeswoman states, however, that Tang is not a direct replacement for Aldcroft. She is said to have a broader remit with responsibility for all aspects of business development, whereas Aldcroft’s role was focused on the indexing side.
Paul So, EIP's current head of beta products, has taken over Aldcroft's business development duties, with support from Tang on the indexing side, the spokeswoman says. Therefore Tang will support So in the development of the firm's ETF series.
Asked for an update on the development of the series, the spokeswoman says only: "We'd like to defer that to another time."
AsianInvestor also understands that EIP has made two other hires to its Hong Kong-based team, although the spokeswoman also declines to disclose details.
Before joining EIP, Tang was vice-president of investment management firm Cube Capital for five months in Hong Kong. There she was tasked with sourcing, evaluating and monitoring hedge fund investments in Asia and developing its Asia marketing strategy.
Prior to that Tang worked for over four years as senior associate with investment management firm Fintan Partners based in San Francisco. She has also worked as a business analyst for consulting firm AT Kearney in New York.
Formed in December 2001 by Bland, ex-head of proprietary trading for Jardine Fleming (now JP Morgan), EIP describes itself as a boutique asset management firm focused on the Asia-Pacific region. It manages about $350 million across its business lines.
It offers non-correlated alpha (hedge funds) and low-cost beta (index funds) products. Through its alpha strategy, EIP says it aims to arbitrage price inefficiencies in emerging markets without having to take directional risk. Some of the strategies used include index arbitrage, share-class arbitrage, pairs-trading, event-driven, volatility trading and convertible bond trading.
Current hedge fund products include the EIP Overlay Fund, the EIP Aleph (alpha) fund and the EIP VAM Asia Fixed Income Fund.