Roundup of people news, April 14
MIRAE ASSET TAPS EX-BLACKROCK EXECUTIVE FOR CHINA SALES HEAD
Former BlackRock executive Brenda Bing has joined Mirae Asset Global Investments as head of sales, China, Bing announced on LinkedIn on April 11.
Bing, who is based in Hong Kong, will cover institutional and intermediaries clients in mainland China and Hong Kong.
Bing was most recently vice president and part of the Greater China sales team at BlackRock in Hong Kong, from October 2021 to March 2023.
She has previously worked in sales and investment banking roles at CSOP Asset Management and Standard Chartered Bank in Hong Kong, and Citi Orient Securities in Beijing.
Mirae Asset Global Investments did not respond to AsianInvestor's request for comment on the hire.
EX-HKMA CHIEF HEADS HONG KONG’S WEB3 INSTITUTE
Former chief executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) Norman Chan Tak-lam was named chairman of newly established non-profit Institute of Web 3.0 Hong Kong, launched on April 11.
The government-supported institute is a cross-industry platform with members from companies related to the Web3 industry.
It aims to promote Hong Kong as well as the Greater Bay Area as a hub for the digital economy through research, consulting, and events.
China Mobile, China Merchants Energy Shipping, Huawei, and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology are its founding institutions.
Honorary chairmen of the new institute include Li Feng, chairman and CEO of China Mobile International, and Chen Chun, member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering.
Chan stepped into Hong Kong’s public sector in 1976 as an administrative officer for the Hong Kong government and joined HKMA as an executive director when it was established in 1993.
He was HKMA’s second chief executive from 2009 to 2019.
In 2020, he founded RD Wallet Technologies, an e-wallet company for cross-border payment.
CapitaLand Investment Limited has appointed Hideto Yamada as managing director for CapitaLand Japan, effective April 17.
Kara Wang was also named chief investment officer (CIO) for CapitaLand China, effective 5 May.
Yamada joins from Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF), where he was its first head of global real estate since February 2017 and launched its real estate strategy.
A GPIF spokesperson declined to answer AsianInvestor’s inquiries about when Yamada left his role and if anyone will take over his job functions.
Yamada will succeed Tan Lai Seng, who will continue as advisor to CapitaLand Japan.
Yamada's principal priorities will be to further develop CLI’s partnership with its onshore capital partners, actively grow funds under management for its private, public and lodging funds, and to identify strategic merger and acquisition opportunities.
Yamada will report to Andrew Lim, group chief operating officer at CapitaLand, a spokesperson told AsianInvestor.
Yamada has previously also worked with Mitsui Fudosan Group.
Incoming CIO Wang will lead direct investments for onshore and offshore fund products, develop CapitaLand’s onshore capital markets capabilities and drive inorganic platform acquisitions.
Wang will also be CapitaLand’s representative for Hong Kong.
Wang will report to Puah Tze Shyang, CEO for CapitaLand China, the spokesperson said, who declined to say if Wang's role is newly created.
Prior to joining CapitaLand, Wang was managing director and Asia co-head of real estate investment banking Asia for Citi from 2020.
She shared the latter role with Jonathan Quek, who will continue as the sole head, a spokesperson told AsianInvestor.
She has also worked with HSBC previously.
NZ SUPER APPOINTS NEW BOARD MEMBER
Fiona Oliver was appointed to the board of the Guardians of New Zealand Superannuation, which manages the New Zealand Superannuation Fund (NZ Super).
Oliver has held governance roles across a breadth of sectors including renewable energy, natural gas, technology, commercial property, financial services, professional services, and sport.
“Fiona brings extensive experience to the Guardians’ governance team along with a strong understanding of global financial influences,” NZ Super said in a statement on April 7.
The statement did not specify the term of her appointment.
Separately, NZ Super also reappointed Doug Pearce to the board for another term until September 2024. He was first appointed to the Guardians’ board in 2016.
NZ Super had around NZ$61.36 billion ($38.17 billion) of assets under management as of January 2023.
JANUS HENDERSON HIRES SALES MANAGEMENT DIRECTOR
Janus Henderson Investors has hired Shanice Loo to the newly created role of director of sales management for its Asia distribution team.
Prior to joining Janus Henderson, Loo, who is based in Singapore, took a brief career break following more than a decade of client services experience at Aberdeen Standard Investments, where she was its head of funds distribution when she left.
At Janus Henderson, Loo will coordinate sales campaigns, oversee distribution team workflow and manage Janus Henderson’s master agent relationship in Taiwan.
Janus Henderson did not respond to an AsianInvestor request for information on who was handling Loo's job functions before the new role was created.
Her appointment is the second hire to the firm’s Asia distribution team and follows the appointment of Marjorie Soh as sales manager in January, who joined the firm from Lazard Asset Management where she covered both institutional and intermediary channels.
Both Loo and Soh report to head of intermediary sales, Asia ex Japan, Alexander Ng, who joined the firm in July 2022.
AVIVA HIRES FOR ASIA PACIFIC CLIENT TEAM
Global asset manager Aviva Investors has appointed Shiqi Wang as client solutions director for global client solutions in Asia Pacific, effective late February.
Wang will be based in Singapore for this newly created role and will report to Richard Surrency, head of Asia Pacific global client solutions.
Prior to Wang’s appointment, Tom Clapham was responsible for driving Aviva Investors' growth in the institutional segment across Asia, a spokeperson told AsianInvestor.
Clapham joined American Century Investments as head of Asia Pacific in September 2022, based in Sydney.
Wang previously worked for Algebris Investments in Singapore, where she led business development and investor relations in Asia and the Middle East. Prior to that, Wang was an investment consultant with Mercer.
Wang’s appointment is another senior hire for Aviva Investors’ Asia Pacific client team and follows that of Richard Surrency, who joined the business in late 2022.
Algebris did not respond to AsianInvestor queries at the time of publication.
JLL HIRES JAPAN CAPITAL MARKETS HEAD
Real estate advisory firm JLL has appointed Ryuta Takeuchi as head of capital markets in Japan.
Tokyo-based Takeuchi will be responsible for JLL’s capital markets platform in the country.
He will work with the firm’s extended global capital markets team to facilitate inbound investment opportunities into Japan’s commercial real estate market and advise domestic capital owners on outbound investment.
Takeuchi reports to Stuart Crow, CEO for capital markets in Asia Pacifc at JLL, a spokesperson told AsianInvestor.
Takeuchi joins JLL from Mitsubishi Corporation where he was president and CEO of Diamond Reality Management, its global real estate investment arm.
Takeuchi oversaw assets under management of over US$8 billion at Mitsubishi Corporation.
Diamond Realty Management announced on April 1 that Hisashi Ishiwata had become president and CEO, effective immediately, after a board meeting held on the same day.
KNIGHT FRANK OPENS PRIVATE CLIENTS-FOCUSED OFFICE IN HONG KONG
Knight Frank has appointed Ho-Pin Tung as head of its new private office in Hong Kong.
The office is Knight Frank’s fifth private office globally and the second in Asia after Singapore, which is headed by Nicholas Keong.
Tung will advise private wealthy clients on their global real estate portfolios.
He joins from Far East Consortium International Ltd., where he was an executive director, a spokesperson to AsianInvestor.
Tung reports to Piers Brunner, CEO for Greater China, and Paddy Dring, head of Knight Frank’s Private Office, and will work closely with all the other private offices globally, the spokesperson said.
His appointment is expected to expand Knight Franks’s private client base, particularly among ultra-high net worth individuals, family offices and their advisers in Hong Kong and the mainland.
FARRO CAPITAL BRINGS IN SENIOR ADVISER
Farro Capital, a Singapore-based wealth management platform and multi-family office, appointed Vincent Valladares as a senior adviser, strengthening the firm’s expertise in ultra-high net worth clients, effective immediately.
Based in Singapore, Valladares will help in coverage and execution support for banking, treasury, risk management and corporate finance requirements for clients.
He was previously executive director at Bank of Singapore. He has previously also worked with RBL Bank and Citibank, and has worked in various geographies including the Middle East and Australia.
Since its soft launch at the end of 2022, Farro Capital has accumulated more than $1 billion in assets under management.
The company plans to add another 50 families in the next 18 to 24 months and aims to expand to a 20-member team by the end of the year.
The team has 14 members (including Valladares) currently.
HANNOVER RE ANNOUNCES KOREA TEAM LEAD
German reinsurer Hannover Re has promoted Muhammad Firdaus Kasman as new team lead for Korea, according to Kasman's LinkedIn profile.
This move comes as part of a streamlining of the company's property and casualty (P&C) insurance operations.
Kasman will expand his role in managing the Korean P&C treaty portfolio together with the company’s Korean underwriters.
Kasman was previously in charge of the Affinity Insurance team -- which covers supplemental insurance -- and will continue his previous responsibilities in this space.
With five years at Hannover Re based in Kuala Lumpur, Kasman’s previous role was head of consumption, accident and health ecosystem for the forementioned markets.
He was previously with Actuarial Partners Consulting and Malaysian sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Berhad.
Hannover Re did not respond to AsianInvestor enquiries for confirmation on Kasman's role and other details.