iShares hires Sandra Lee to run Asia sales

Following Morgan Stanley Investment Management’s decision to exit the retail market in Asia, Sandra Lee will become Asia-Pacific head of sales in Hong Kong at iShares, the exchange-traded funds arm of US asset manager BlackRock.

Lee is now on gardening leave and will start her new role in Hong Kong in November, heading institutional and retail sales and reporting to Nick Good, Asia-Pacific head of iShares. Her predecessor was David Gardner, who relocated to Europe as head of Northern Europe and the Middle East in February, having spent a year in the Asia role.

iShares is the biggest ETF provider worldwide and the second biggest ETF provider in Asia ex-Japan after State Street Global Advisors, with $9.1 billion in assets under management and a 19% market share in the region, as of August 31.

Lee was previously regional deputy to MSIM’s Asia chief executive, Blair Pickerell, who has since joined Nikko Asset Management as head of Asia and global head of marketing in Hong Kong. She was responsible for institutional and intermediary product sales, including alternative investment strategies.

Prior to MSIM, Lee worked at French bank Société Générale as China CEO for its client solutions group as well as for global equities and derivatives solutions for investors. She has also had stints at Jardine Fleming Asset Management and HSBC Asset Management.

MSIM has hired Paul Price to run Asia institutional sales out of London. He will head ex-North American institutional and intermediary sales, including Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America, as well as Asia.