Weekly roundup of people news, Sept 1
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PRUDENTIAL NAMES EASTSPRING CEO
Prudential has appointed Bill Maldonado as chief executive officer (CEO) of its asset management business, Eastspring Investments.
The appointment is effective September 1.
Based in Singapore, he reports to Prudential CEO Anil Wadhwani and will join the Prudential group executive committee.
Maldonado has been serving as interim CEO since April this year.
He joined Eastspring Investments in September 2021 and was appointed chief investment officer (CIO) in May 2022.
A new CIO for Eastspring will be appointed in due course, Prudential said in a release.
Maldonado has 30 years of asset management experience. Prior to joining Eastspring, Maldonado served as the Asia Pacific CIO and Global CIO of Equities at HSBC Global Asset Management.
AUSTRALIANSUPER NAMES HEAD OF INTERNATIONAL AND PE
AustralianSuper, the largest superannuation fund in Australia, has appointed Mark Hargraves as its new head of international and private equity.
Based in London, Hargraves will lead AustralianSuper's international equities and private equity teams and will play a crucial role in the fund's investments and provide leadership for the London team.
Hargraves spent the past 23 years at AXA Investment Management, most recently as its head of equity, where he lead a team of approximately 60 fund managers.
AXA IM did not respond to AsianInvestor's query on Hargraves replacement.
AustralianSuper has ambitious plans for the future, with a projected A$700 billion (about $453 billion) in members' funds under management by 2030.
As part of this growth strategy, the fund aims to allocate nearly 70% of its increasing inflows into global markets.
The global equities portfolio stands at A$69 billion ($45 billion) currently, and is expected to reach approximately A$255 billion ($165 billion) in coming years.
Similarly, the private equity portfolio is projected to grow from A$14 billion ($9 billion) to around A$55 billion ($35.6 billion).
GIC HEAD OF SUSTAINABLITY DEPARTS
The head of sustainability at Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, GIC, has left the organisation, after taking on the role in June 2022.
She was also head of total portfolio sustainable investing in the economics and investment strategy department at GIC.
A GIC spokesperson confirmed the departure and said the SWF “wishes her well in her future endeavours.”
Shang Thong Chie, director of enterprise strategy, will take over as sustainability officer in the interim while GIC continues to look for a suitable replacement for Teo, a spokesperson confirmed to AsianInvestor.
Teo joined GIC in 2005 covering thematic research and investment strategy.
She has also worked with Monetary Authority of Singapore in research and monetary management roles.
FWD SINGAPORE HIRES CHIEF NET WORTH OFFICER
FWD Singapore appointed Jason Tsui as its first chief high net worth (HNW) officer to spearhead the launch of its first HNW product for accredited investors.
The expansion into HNW enables FWD Singapore to provide insurance solutions to private bank clients through international brokers.
Tsui was previously managing director of Lombard International’s Asia brokerage operations in Hong Kong and Singapore.
The insurer will also partner with Apollo to launch its first HNW plan, which will be the first of the multiple potential initiatives.
JANUS HENDERSON HIRES IN SINGAPORE, HONG KONG
British-American global asset manager Janus Henderson Investors has made a series of hires for its Hong Kong and Singapore offices.
Alexis Lavergne joined as an investment specialist for fixed income last month.
His Singapore-based role is newly created, and he reports to Andrew Hendry, Singapore chief executive and head of distribution for Asia.
Lavergne was previously client portfolio manager at H2O Asset Management, which he joined in 2018. He has also worked at BlackRock and Natixis Investment Managers.
Andrew Cox joined Janus Henderson as an investment specialist for equity, also last month.
His Singapore-based role is also newly created, and he also reports to Hendry.
Cox joined the firm following a brief career break, before which he was a consultant at digital conveyancing company Martello, according to his LinkedIn page.
He was previously head of investor relations and corporate development at real estate firm Globalworth and held senior equity research and portfolio manager investment roles at Schroders, Ell Capital Management, GIC Real Estate and Numis Securities in London and New York.
Stephanie Joeson joined Janus Henderson’s Hong Kong office on August 28 as a director, and reports to Alex Ng, the firm’s head of intermediary sales for Asia ex Japan.
She replaces Cody Law, who took up a position at Jupiter Asset Management on July 11.
Joeson joined JHI from Invesco, where she was a senior manager for intermediary sales covering private bank distributions, having joined the firm in 2018. She has also worked with Income Partners and Citibank.
Keith Chan joined Janus Henderson’s Hong Kong office on August 14 as sales manager for intermediary sales, also reporting to Ng and replacing Eugene Wong.
Chan joined from Lazard Asset Management, where he was an associate in the firm’s financial institutions group, having joined in 2022.
Before joining Lazard, Chan was an associate at Bank J. Safra Sarasin.
BARINGS HIRES IN AUSTRALIA, SOUTHEAST ASIA
Barings has appointed Aaron Thirukumar as director for institutional sales, effective July 31, and Sabrina Kwek as senior director for wealth distribution, effective August 1.
Thirukumar will develop and manage client relationships and raise capital across the institutional channel in Australia.
Based in Sydney, he reports to Michael Gaffney, head of distribution for Australia and New Zealand.
Thirukumar comes from Dimensional Fund Advisors in Sydney, where he was regional director and vice president for the institutional business.
Dimensional did not respond to AsianInvestor’s enquiries about when Thirukumar left the firm and who took over his responsibilities.
Kwek wil develop and manage client relationships and raise capital across the wealth channel in Southeast Asia.
She is based in Singapore and reports to Lydia Wu, head of distribution for Greater China and Southeast Asia.
Kwek joined from Allianz Global Investors in Singapore, where she was director in the private banking business for Greater China and Southeast Asia.
Allianz Global Investors did not respond to AsianInvestor’s enquiries about when Kewk left the firm and who took over her responsibilities.
Kwek previously held positions at Mirae Asset Global Investments, Robeco and Credit Suisse in Hong Kong and Singapore.
INSURANCE AUTHORITY CEO TERM EXTENDED
The Hong Kong government appointed Insurance Authority’s (IA) CEO, Clement Cheung, for another term of three years from August 15, 2023, to August 14, 2026.
“Mr Cheung has played a key role in navigating the IA through its period of formation, setting strategic visions and performance indicators for sustainable development of the insurance market amidst an external environment of rising volatility and complexity,” said IA Chairman Stephen You.
Cheung was appointed CEO in August 2018 after he retired from the Administrative Service, which he joined in 1983.
JLL HIRES GREATER CHINA DEBT ADVISORY LEAD
JLL appointed Robert Lay as senior director, debt advisory, capital markets, Asia Pacific.
Based in Hong Kong, Lay will be responsible for JLL’s debt advisory platform in Greater China, partnering with members of the wider capital markets teams in Hong Kong and Mainland China, and across Asia Pacific.
In this newly created role, Lay will have a special focus on sourcing real estate debt advisory opportunities through his external network across Greater China.
He will report to Theo Novak, executive director, capital markets transactions, Asia Pacific, and will work closely with Paul Brindley, head of debt advisory, Asia Pacific.
He comes from Bank of China (New Zealand) where he was most recently head of corporate development and acting head of corporate banking.
Lay previously held several executive roles at ASB Bank and MUFG Bank in New Zealand.
KEPPEL DC REIT MANAGEMENT NAMES TWO DIRECTORS
Keppel DC REIT Management, appointed Chua Soon Ghee and Andrew Tan as independent directors, effective September 1.
Lee Chiang Huat and Dileep Nair will step down from the board on the same day, while Tan Tin Wee will step down on November 1.
Chua is a senior partner with Kearney, a leading global management consulting firm.
He has been with the firm for over 20 years and was previously head of Southeast Asia at the firm as well.
Chua is also a member of the board of directors of the Infocomm Media Development Authority, a member of the Advisory Panel on Digital Infrastructure formed by Singapore’s Ministry of Communications and Information and the World Economic Forum’s Regional Action Group for Asia-Pacific.
Tan was formerly managing director with Temasek International (Temasek).
He joined as operating partner in the enterprise development group and later as managing director of the strategy Office, as well as managing director institutional relations from 2019 to 2022.
Tan currently sits on the Singapore Management University Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurship’s enterprise board.