Weekly roundup of people news, Nov 17
SUN LIFE ASIA ALM HEAD JATEEN VAGHELA LEAVES
Sun Life Financial’s Hong Kong-based vice president Jateen Vaghela, who was head of asset liability management, products and business implications (IFRS17), Asia, left the firm in July after 11 years, AsianInvestor can reveal.
In the role he took since January 2021, Vaghela oversaw Sun Life Asia’s ALM, as well as financial and business applications of IFRS 17 (International Financial Reporting Standards) and IFRS 9.
He was also responsible for Asia product strategy, pricing, and value optimisation.
Sun Life did not respond to an enquiry about Vaghela’s departure and whether there is a replacement for his role.
Hong Kong-based Vaghela told AsianInvestor that he has been on a wellness break while exploring new opportunities in Asia-Pacific insurance and financial services.
Vaghela has nearly 20 years of experience in the financial industry across London and Hong Kong. He joined Sun Life in 2012 as ALM head for the UK, based in London.
He relocated to Hong Kong in 2018 as the head of Asia and UK ALM, and became solely focused on Asia ALM in 2019.
Before joining Sun Life, he also worked at Aviva, Mercer, and Rand Merchant Bank in London.
PHILIPPINES WEALTH FUND GETS FIRST CEO
Rafael D. Consing Jr was named as president and chief executive officer of Maharlika Investment Corporation (MIC), the country’s sovereign wealth fund in the making.
According to a statement issued by the Presidential Communications Office on November 13, Consing is currently executive director of the Office of the Presidential Adviser for Investment and Economic Affairs.
Before that, he worked at HSBC in Hong Kong and Singapore as well as International Container Terminal Services in Manila.
The appointment came two days after a rule governing the hiring of MIC’s top official was revised to grant the Philippines’ president powers to accept or reject and advisory board’s nomination.
CERULLI TO SHUT ASIA, EUROPE OPERATIONS
Research consultancy Cerulli Associates will cease research operations in Europe and Asia by the end of calendar 2023, a spokesperson for the company confirmed to AsianInvestor.
The company intends to focus exclusively on the US, Canadian, and Latin American markets, maintaining coverage of the asset management, wealth management, retirement, and institutional marketplaces to provide clients with greater insights and strategic positioning, the spokesperson said.
“The company will continue to service clients globally with its coverage of the Americas; however, they will no longer offer research coverage of Europe and Asia effective January 1, 2024. Business operations in these regions will also close as of January 1, 2024,” the spokesperson said.
Cerulli's Asia headquarters is in Singapore. AsianInvestor was unable to confirm at the time of publication if the entire team will be let go.
BOSERA AM'S GENERAL MANAGER DEPARTS
Shenzhen-headquartered Bosera Asset Management’s general manager Gao Yang left the company due to personal reasons, the Chinese asset management firm said on November 11.
Chairman Jiang Xiangyang has taken over Gao’s responsibilities to oversee operations on an interim basis.
Gao joined Bosera in 2000 and held senior roles including head of fixed income and head of equity investments.
He left the firm in 2008 to join Penghua Fund Management and rejoined Bosera in 2021 as general manager.
Founded in 1998, Bosera is one of the first mutual fund managers in China. Its assets under management were Rmb929 billion ($128 billion) as of Nov 10.
AMUNDI APPOINTS NEW ETF SALES HEADS
Asset management firm Amundi appointed Sunny Leung as head of ETF indexing and smart beta sales in Asia ex-Japan and Jeffrey Jeon as head of ETF indexing and smart beta sales in North Asia.
Both hires are effective September. At the time of press, Amundi had not responded to where Leung and Jeon will be based and who previously held their roles.
Leung and his team will focus on ETF business development across both institutional and wealth segments in Asia ex Japan.
Leung was previously head of ETF indexing and smart beta sales in South Asia from 2019 to 2023, and prior to that (2017-2019) head of ETF indexing and smart beta sales in North Asia.
Before joining Amundi, Leung worked at State Street Global Advisors in Singapore, Vanguard Investment in Hong Kong, Credit Suisse Asset Management and Lyxor Asset Management.
Jeon joined Amundi in September and is responsible for the development of Amundi’s fund ETF business in mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Korea. Jeon reports to Leung.
Prior to joining Amundi, Jeon worked at BlackRock for 11 years in Hong Kong and Seoul, most recently within their ETF business, iShares.
BlackRock did not respond to AsianInvestor's enquiries at the time of press about when Jeon left and who took over his role.
WRISE EXPANDS OPERATIONS WITH JAPAN DESK
Multi-family office and wealth manager WRISE Group appointed Shigehiro Suzuki as market head of Japan.
Suzuki will lead a team in the Singapore office providing wealth management services to Japanese clients.
Suzuki joined on November 6 and reports to Derrick Tan, chairman at WRISE Group, a spokesperson told AsianInvestor.
The appointment of Suzuki follows recent hires of Helen Lam as the new group chief operating officer and Gaven Koh as group head of risk and compliance in October.
The hire of Suzuki will be followed by the setup of an upcoming corporate services office in Japan, dedicated to serving the needs of Asian ultra high net worth clients interested in establishing their presence in Japan.
Suzuki was most recently at Bank of Singapore, which did not respond to AsianInvestor's enquiries for more details on Suzuki's departure. He previously worked at Credit Suisse and Grant Thornton Taiyo ASG (Japan).
REST HIRES HEAD OF PUBLIC POLICY
Rest, the A$75 billion superannuation fund, appointed Enrico Burgio as its new head of public policy.
Burgio, who previously held a senior management position in policy and advocacy at HESTA, transitioned to Rest this month.
He is based in Melbourne.
Reporting to Tyrone O'Neill, Rest's chief people, strategy, and corporate affairs officer, Burgio will be responsible for executing the fund's public affairs strategy, which encompasses defining Rest's public policy positions and managing government and stakeholder engagement.
AsianInvestor was unable to ascertain who was in Burgio's role before he took over.
MSQUARED CAPITAL HIRES COO AND GM
Msquared Capital is strengthening its local team with the two hires: Greg Thomas and Michael Volkiene.
Both hires are based in Sydney.
Thomas was named chief operating officer in September. He joins from Bangarra Family Office, where he held the position of chief executive.
Volkiene, who joined the firm in November, was named general manager of loan origination and credit.
Volkiene has held senior management roles at various institutions including HBOS Australia, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, FleetPartners, Bank of Queensland, and ANZ.
His most recent role was chief executive at fintech and professional services group idutch.
Heather Watson was named chief executive of Bangarra Family Office in July after Thomas stepped down.