RBC names Asia head of wealth management

The Royal Bank of Canada has named Andrew Turczyniak in a newly created role as Asia head of wealth management in a continuation of the firm’s expansion in emerging markets.

Turczyniak was serving as Hong Kong CEO of RBC Capital Markets, its corporate and investment banking arm. He had also just assumed the role of head of strategic relationships tasked with strengthening collaboration between RBC Capital Markets and RBC Wealth Management in Asia.

A spokesperson for RBC says this relationships role is still one of Turczyniak's priorities to increase collaboration between the two business lines, particularly in serving entrepreneurs and their businesses. "[Turczyniak]'s appointment to the new position reflects the commitment of building the wealth management business in Asia," the spokesperson states.

AsianInvestor understands that Turczyniak is still in place as CEO of RBC Capital Markets and that a replacement has yet to be confirmed.

His promotion comes after Doug Moore was named this June as head of RBC Capital Markets Asia, based in Hong Kong, in another newly created role. Since retiring as general manager and head of strategic planning at Henderson Land Development in 2004, Moore has focused on private investment and family office. He was active in private equity, hedge funds, stocks and foreign exchange, AsianInvestor was told.

RBC Capital Markets also promoted Australia COO Alan Downie to Asia-Pacific COO in June, while Frederic Lainé was this week unveiled as RBC Capital Markets’ head of fixed income and currencies for Asia ex-Japan, having previously been regional head of the financial institutions group at Credit Agricole.

Amid the company reorganisation, RBC declined to make anyone available for interview to discuss Turczyniak’s move or its broader wealth management strategy for the region.

A spokesperson for Brunswick Group, the public relations firm engaged by RBC, says: “[Turczyniak] was mostly focused on client relationships in the region, so it’s a natural transition for him to take on the Asia wealth management business. This is where his expertise lies.”

Last September, RBC Wealth Management announced an organisational change to accelerate growth of its international business, with a focus on emerging markets. A month later it confirmed the acquisition of Fortis Wealth Management Hong Kong, and in January this year RBC named Barend Janssens its new head of wealth management for emerging markets.

Janssens spent over 20 years at ABN Amro Bank, the last five as CEO of Asia private banking, before leaving in 2009. The Dutch bank was re-established that year after ABN Amro Group was sold shortly before the global financial crisis to an RBS-led consortium including Fortis, which subsequently collapsed and was nationalised. Janssens was briefly head of Fortis Private Banking Asia-Pacific.

Turczyniak now reports to Janssens, who in a statement highlighted his new hire’s leadership experience and “deep relationships” in the region.

The statement notes that Turczyniak has more than 18 years’ industry experience, having worked at RBC since 1995 including stints in London, Sydney and Hong Kong for RBC Capital Markets and RBC Wealth Management.

Based out of Singapore, Janssens is responsible for growing RBC Wealth Management’s client-facing teams in Asia, Latin America and Europe, Middle East and Africa. The firm has listed its priorities for 2011 as gaining market share and building more corporate relationships in Asia.

RBC’s main Asia hubs are Hong Kong and Singapore, while RBC Wealth Management also has a branch in Brunei and a representative office in Beijing.

RBC Wealth Management has clearly been bulking up in Hong Kong where it now employs about 160 people, compared with around 70 in Singapore, while it maintains small representative offices in Brunei and Beijing. It offers client advisory and discretionary wealth management, structured solutions and tax advice.

It services more than 1,000 high-net-worth families in the region, while its client base in Asia is around 83% high-net-worth individuals, 12% corporate and 5% institutions.

RBC Wealth Management also provides asset management products and services directly and through RBC and third-party distributors to institutional and individual clients. Overall it has C$300 billion ($312 billion) in assets under management worldwide.