HSBC Private Bank’s Singapore-based chief executive has left the bank after 18 months in the role.

Nancie Dupier has left to be replaced by Amit Gupta, currently head of global markets. Dupier has moved to HSBC Americas.

Dupier started her most recent role at the UK-listed lender in October 2010. She joined in the midst of a radical management rejig that saw global private bank CEO Chris Meares relocate from London to Hong Kong, underlining the importance of the region. Alexandre Zeller was appointed head of the private bank for Europe, Middle East and Africa. Long-standing Asia private bank CEO Monica Wong retired, to be replaced by Dupier and her colleague Desmond Liu, who became head of private banking for North Asia.

Dupier started at the bank in 2005 as chief investment officer, head of investment and product group, Americas.  In 2009 she was promoted to chief executive of the Singapore-based private bank, as a replacement for Jimmy So.

Prior to HSBC, Dupier held senior executive roles at Chase Manhattan, JP Morgan and Bank of America. She returns to HSBC Americas.

Gupta takes over the CEO role on 13 February. He joined HSBC India in 1992 and has served as senior economist, head of derivatives and head of sales, among others. He moved to Singapore in 2000.

HSBC is currently in the midst of a far-reaching cost-cutting program announced last year, which includes plans to reduce global headcount by 30,000. 

The large-scale cuts, which would represent about 10 per cent of HSBC’s work force, are part of the company’s strategy to reduce expenses by $2.5 billion to $3.5 billion over the next two years. The layoffs include 5,000 positions the bank already eliminated last year by closing some businesses where it lacked presence.