A roundup of the moves and appointments around the world in the wealth management sector during October.

International moves (UK, Switzerland, rest of Europe, Middle East, select locations.
Deutsche Bank named Saad Osseiran as head of wealth management – Middle East/GCC (based in Dubai); Billy Obregon, who was already the head of LATAM, was appointed head of wealth management – LATAM (based in New York). Esther Wong was named head of institutional wealth management and family offices. She is market head within Southeast Asia, based in Singapore and leads the institutional wealth management initiative.

GAM Holding named global chief risk officer Elmar Zumbuehl as its group chief executive. A Swiss citizen, Zumbuehl joined the Zurich-listed investment firm in 2010 and prior to this, worked at Julius Baer for 10 years in senior roles, including the bank’s asset management arm, of which GAM Holding was part at the time.

The Gulf Investment Fund, a UK-listed investment company, appointed former JP Morgan Asset Management and Schroders senior figure Patrick Grant as a non-executive director. Grant was head of the Middle East for JP Morgan Asset Management for a decade; following that he was in the same role for Schroders for more than 12 years. His earlier career included working at John Swire & Sons across Asia (including in Bahrain) after six years as an officer in the British Army (Gurkhas).  

HSBC appointed a new head of its global private banking Middle East and North Africa business. Aladdin Hangari took over from Sobhi Tabbara who announced that he was leaving to pursue new opportunities.

Tabbara has led the business since 2012, expanding its coverage of the ultra-high net worth segment to markets such as Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Qatar. Both he and Hangari serve as co-heads of the role until January 2024 to ensure a smooth transfer of responsibilities. Prior to his new role, Hangari worked for 20 years at Credit Suisse, most recently as chief executive of Credit Suisse (Qatar LLC) and CEO of Aventicum Capital Management Holding. Separately, HSBC appointed another former Credit Suisse figure, Patrick D’Damico, as global market head for Qatar. Christian Hiller, Thomas Schaad and Simon Aeschlimann also joined the Qatar team from Credit Suisse as relationship managers. They are based in Switzerland and integrated with HSBC’s existing desk based onshore in Qatar.

Stonehage Fleming, the multi-family office, appointed Taymour Mortagui as a director and senior client relationship manager in its Zurich family office arm. Mortagui joined bringing more than a decade’s experience to the role. Prior to this, he worked as managing director and head of Middle East for Covario AG, a cryptocurrency primary dealer business. Mortagui is based in Zurich, reporting to Caroline Bauer, head of the Zurich family office business.

C Hoare & Co, the UK bank, appointed Andrew Leach as a relationship manager for the North West of England. Leach works with Simon King, who joined the bank in 2021 as a senior relationship manager.

Julius Baer appointed four senior bankers to serve clients linked to Asia-Pacific region. The bankers are based in Switzerland:

Fernando Kresna Baay, team head, APAC Switzerland. Baay reports to Christian Cappelli, head of APAC Switzerland. He joined from Credit Suisse where he was mostly recently a senior relationship manager covering Singapore, Australia, Indonesia and Malaysia. He was previously at Citi Private Bank where he spent 17 years as a RM.

Abraham Ara and Jacqlyn Mak, both RMs from Credit Suisse, joined Baay’s team. Another hire was Christophe Amadieu, senior RM, reporting to Gideon Dessauer, team head of APAC Switzerland. Amadieu was previously at UBS where he spent 14 years as an RM.

EFG appointed Tobias Wehrli as the new CEO of EFG Bank von Ernst AG (Liechtenstein). He succeeded Daniel Taverna, who was appointed as EFG’s head of private banking Liechtenstein. Wehrli reports directly to Franco Polloni, head of Switzerland and Italy region at EFG. Wehrli is based in Vaduz.   

Wehrli has almost three decades of experience in the field of wealth management and private banking. He joined VP Bank AG Liechtenstein, where he spent eight years serving as a member of the group executive Management and Head Intermediaries and Private Banking, Regional Management from 2020. Wehrli was previously head of external asset managers and a member of the executive board of St Galler Kantonalbank. 

Vontobel replaced Zeno Staub, who announced earlier in 2023 that he was standing down as chief executive to follow a career in public life, with two co-CEOs. Georg Schubiger, head of wealth management, and Christel Rendu de Lint, PhD, head of investments, will share the CEO role as of 1 January 2024.

Franklin Templeton made leadership appointments in global distribution. Matt Harrison was appointed as head of Europe & UK distribution. Harrison relocated to London and reports to Adam Spector, EVP and head of global distribution at Franklin Templeton. Harrison was previously co-head of APAC at Franklin Templeton, based in Sydney. Prior to joining the firm in 2018, he served in senior roles at various firms including Colonial First State, Commonwealth Bank and ING. As a result of Harrison’s new role, Tariq Ahmad’s responsibilities were expanded and he has been named sole head of APAC distribution reporting to Spector. Singapore-based Ahmad was previously co-head of APAC distribution.

Dubai-based Sandeep Singh was appointed head of Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (CEEMEA) and India distribution, also reporting to Spector. Singh was previously head of CEEMEA distribution overseeing the leadership and development of the firm’s retail and institutional business in CEEMEA. Harrison and Singh took over the distribution responsibilities held by former head of EMEA distribution Julian Ide, who was appointed vice chair, EMEA reporting to president and CEO Jenny Johnson. 

Martin Currie named Jen Mair as chief executive officer from October, replacing former CEO Julian Ide who transitioned into a newly-created position. Since joining Martin Currie in 2015, Edinburgh-based Mair was the firm’s chief operating officer (COO) as well as a director of Martin Currie Investment Management. Mair has more than 20 years of experience working internationally in financial services, including 11 years with Barclays in corporate finance and global strategy. 

Global investor services group IQ-EQ appointed Brian McArthur-Muscroft as its new group chief financial officer. Prior to joining IQ-EQ, he was CFO for financial intelligence innovator Qontigo. He was also formerly the group CFO for Micro Focus International, a FTSE100 global infrastructure software company.

The board of directors of Sienna Investment Managers elected Michael Dobson non-executive chairman from September. Former chief executive and chairman of Schroders, Michael Dobson succeeded in his new role Ian Gallienne, CEO of Groupe Bruxelles Lambert, who remained a member of the board. 

London-based boutique wealth and fund manager Tyndall Investment Management appointed Edward Baring and Ed Harvey as investment directors within its private client practice. They joined from Walker Crips Investment Management.

UK-headquartered Alpha FMC, a global consultancy to the asset management, wealth management and insurance industries, appointed Caroline Burkart and Basak Alhan Aydin as directors. Kenn Taylor retired after seven years heading the team.

Ogier's head of estate planning, wills and probate in Jersey, Henry Wickham, was promoted to partner. Wickham, a STEP member, and former chair of STEP Jersey Branch has sat on several consultative bodies relating to Jersey's trust industry. 

International law firm, Bedell Cristin made promotions across business and support lines in the Cayman Islands, Jersey and London. Daniel Altneu, who joined the firm in 2013, was promoted to partner in the international private client team in the Cayman Islands. Altneu offers a full private client service covering every aspect of immigration, residency, trusts and wealth structuring, estate planning, probate and family law. Sonia Shah became managing associate in the litigation team in Jersey. Shah joined the firm in March 2016 having qualified with Gordon Dadds in London. In the Jersey financial services law team based in London, Nkechi Hokstad was promoted to managing associate. Hokstad joined the firm in January having qualified with Clifford Chance in London.

Asset manager Nuveen named Kyrylo Sukhanenko as managing director, head of UK Insurance, to strengthen its UK insurance offering. Based in London, he is responsible for developing Nuveen’s UK insurance client segment, reporting to Brian Schaper, managing director, business development – global client group. 

Quilter Cheviot Europe, the European subsidiary of UK wealth manager Quilter Cheviot, hired four investment managers and a trainee investment manager into its newly-renovated Dublin office. Sara Williams and Kevin Nealon both previously worked at Allied Irish Banks (AIB). Williams was relationship manager for AIB private banking while Nealon was head of retail banking. Cathal O'Donnell and Alan Breen join as investment managers from Cantor Fitzgerald. Both were previously senior investment managers in their Dublin office. 

Arbuthnot Latham, the UK private and commercial bank, hired John Hilson as head of entrepreneurs, private banking. Hilson, who has worked alongside entrepreneurs since 2002, joined from another UK private bank, Hampden & Co, where he was a business development director and built strategic partnerships with private client advisors.

Andreas Feller, who has been head of Swiss onshore and deputy head of private banking for Rothschild & Co, became head of private banking, Zurich. He had been in his previous role from April 2022 to September this year, also based in Zurich. For more than 12 years, he worked at Julius Baer, most recently as head of the German-speaking region Swiss market segment at Julius Baer.

UBS elevated Niels Zilkens to lead its wealth business in the Middle East. Bruno Daher, who was promoted to be UBS’s top executive for the wealth management division in the Middle East just three months ago, became chairman of the division. Daher was previously Credit Suisse’s top executive in the Gulf region. He was named Novakovic’s top deputy in the Middle East in July. Ali Janoudi, who previously ran UBS’s wealth business for the Middle East and Africa, resigned from the bank.

Pictet announced that senior partner Renaud de Planta was stepping down from the board of partners from 30 June 2024. De Planta joined the private bank in 1998 as managing partner and became its senior partner in 2019. Marc Pictet, a family member of the bank, is to take over from de Planta as senior partner on 1 July 2024. Marc Pictet joined Pictet in 2001.

Amundi appointed Aurélia Lecourtier as chief financial officer and Dominico Aiello as deputy chief executive for Italy – a newly-created role. Lecourtier replaced Aiello. Lecourtier joined the firm in 2021 as chief of staff of Valérie Baudson, CEO. Between 2017 and 2021, she was advisor to the Prime Minister, in charge of public accounts, civil service and state reform. Aiello has been with Amundi since 2017 and has been chief financial officer since 2019.

Quintet Private Bank, the parent of Brown Shipley, appointed Warren Hastings as group co-head of investment and head of portfolio management. Hastings, a British national, is now based in Luxembourg. Prior to this, Hastings was at Credit Suisse for 12 years, first in Asia and then for the previous five years in Zurich.

Trust Templeton Emerging Markets Investment Trust (TEMIT), an investment company listed on the London Stock Exchange, appointed Angus Macpherson as a non-executive director (NED) from October, and as chairman-elect. 

Two senior UBS figures joined Julius Baer’s top management. Sonia Gössi, Switzerland and Europe, is joining 1 January 2024. At UBS, she was sector head for wealth management in the “Europe International North” segment. Thomas Frauenlob, in the intermediaries and family offices segment, will be joining Julius Baer on 1 April 2024 from UBS. 

Flavio Cereda joined GAM as co-investment manager for the firm’s luxury brands investment strategy. He is based in London and part of the European equity team led by Niall Gallagher, investment director of the European equity funds. Cereda has over 30 years of investment experience in the luxury sector. Prior to joining GAM, Cereda had been head of luxury goods research at Jefferies International since 2017. 
 

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Union Bancaire PrivĂ©e hired Christian Betzel as head of the wholesale EMEA business. Betzel has 23 years of experience in the asset management industry, primarily in sales and as head of wholesale. He joined UBP from Wellington Management where he headed the wholesale business for the EMEA region. Christophe Gantenbein, who joined UBP in January 2023 as global head of Private Markets institutional solutions, now leads Private Markets business development. 

Fatima Asad-Bakhtiari joined Edmond de Rothschild Asset Management as managing director, head of distribution Middle East. The role is a newly-created one. She reports to Marie Jacot, global head of distribution at Edmond de Rothschild Asset Management.

Union Bancaire PrivĂ©e said that Vikram Gopalakrishnan, who joined the Swiss private bank in January this year, no longer works at the firm. Gopalakrishnan was based in Geneva, and his role involved focusing on ultra-high net worth clients in emerging markets. 

Canaccord Genuity Wealth Management in the UK & Crown Dependencies melded the chief investment offices of CGWM and Punter Southall Wealth. It named Richard Champion and Thomas Becket as co-chief investment officers. Champion has been with CGWM UK since 2015 as deputy chief investment officer. Becket joined when CGWM acquired PSW in 2021 where he was chief investment officer.

GAM, the fund manager and part of Zurich-listed GAM Holding, appointed Romain Miginiac as co-fund manager of GAM’s Credit Opportunities investment strategy. Miginiac, who is based in Geneva, co-manages the strategy alongside existing managers Anthony Smouha, Gregoire Mivelaz and Patrick Smouha. In addition to this new role, Miginiac remains co-fund manager of the GAM Sustainable Climate Bond strategy and head of research at Atlanticomnium.

Nomura, the Japanese banking house, appointed former senior Deutsche Bank figure Anurag Mahesh to join its international wealth management arm. He is based in Singapore and responsible for client relationship management teams for Southeast Asia, global South Asia and the Middle East. Mahesh reports to Ravi Raju, Nomura’s head of international wealth management. Prior to his new role, Mahesh was vice-chairman of wealth management in Asia Pacific for Deutsche Bank. 

London-based law firm RWK appointed Rebecca Gillard in their residential property, farms and estates team as a senior associate, based in the Bath office. She joined from Trethowans and spent the last nine years specialising in agricultural property.

Oak Group appointed Kim Sgarlata as Group CEO to lead the firm’s “transformational growth journey.” 

The wealth management and financial planning business, Succession Wealth, made two executive appointments to expand its senior leadership team, with Dawn Buckingham joining as group operations director and Chris Truman as chief technology officer. Buckingham, who leads client delivery, paraplanning and investment operations, has more than two decades of experience in financial services. Previously she served as chief operating officer for Investec's Private Bank and, more recently, as head of operations for the wider Investec Group. Truman’s career spans over 25 years, with a wealth of knowledge derived from many sectors and roles, including most recently at Aviva, where he has served in several leadership roles, and previously at Telecity Networks and SABMiller.  

The independent, nonprofit organisation, Middle East Investor Relations Association, appointed Paolo Casamassima as the new chief executive officer of MEIRA. 

The pan-European investment manager, Sienna Real Estate (Sienna RE), appointed MichaĂ«l Hameau as head of France. Hameau joined from BlackRock where he spent seven years, most recently heading the asset management of the firm’s French real estate activities. 

UBS Global Wealth Management appointed Allister Hogg, to join the firm’s Newcastle office as a client advisor. Marcus Stewart, a client advisor at UBS Global Wealth Management in London, relocated to Newcastle, where he took on a new role as North East office head, reporting to Debjani Raffan, head of Scotland, Northern Ireland, the North East, and Yorkshire, at UBS Global Wealth Management. Hogg joined from Barclays Wealth Management in Newcastle, where he has spent the last five years as a client advisor.

The global wealth management brand of Crédit Agricole Group, Indosuez Wealth Management, appointed Chrystèle Dagras head of risk management and permanent control. Dagras replaced Andras Takacs, who is now deputy CEO in Luxembourg. Dagras began her career in 1993 at Crédit du Nord as a corporate relationship manager. Since September 2019, she has been head of risk – corporate and specialised lending – real estate, transport, leverage and telecoms for EMEA.

Old Mill, the wealth manager, appointed financial planner and digital advice specialist Hugh Johnson. Johnson was formerly the global head of operations at Fry Group responsible for integrating the firm’s multi-service proposition before professional services firm Progeny bought it in 2022.

Union Bancaire Privée has appointed three “seasoned experts” to build out its emerging market fixed income product range. Following on from the recruitment of Sergio Trigo Paz from BlackRock as head of its EM fixed income team in September 2022, UBP hired Jack Deino and Raphaël Maréchal as senior portfolio panagers, from BlackRock and Nikko AM respectively, in addition to Alonso Perez-Kakabadse as senior portfolio advisor and strategist, from Wellington Management.

S64, a global alternatives solutions business, appointed Pedro Sabido as head of Iberia, based in Madrid. Sabido, who has a decade of industry-leading private banking experience, began his private banking career at Santander covering Brazil and Latin America, before joining UBS Wealth Management in London. He joined Allfunds as head of business development in Brazil in October 2021.

Lombard Odier appointed former UBS senior figure Ali Janoudi as its new markets region head, responsible for pursuing the bank’s growth strategy in the Middle East in particular. The move came as Arnaud Leclerc, who built the Swiss firm’s presence and client base in the Middle-East for the past 17 years, decided to hand over his managerial responsibilities. Janoudi reports to Frédéric Rochat.

IQ-EQ appointed Paul Griffith as chief commercial officer for Ireland. Prior to joining IQ-EQ in 2021, Griffith was a commercial director with Intertrust Group and managed a portfolio of asset finance, capital markets and private equity clients.

Independent investment manager, Oakglen Wealth (formerly known as Oakbridge Wealth), appointed Richard Firth as a consultant and Michael Clarke as investment director. Firth, who is based in the UK, worked in financial services for three decades; his experience includes executive positions at Quilter Cheviot, Cazenove, and Greig Middleton. Based in Jersey, Clarke offers support and guidance to private clients, family offices, and trust companies. Clarke, who has more than 35 years of industry experience, has held senior wealth management positions at HSBC and UBS.

Close Brothers Asset Management appointed Peter Horton as senior investment director and head of CBAM’s new office in Cheltenham. Previously, Horton was a divisional director at Investec Wealth for over 17 years, based in Birmingham and Cheltenham. 

Evelyn Partners appointed Andrew Moat as a financial planner in its Nottingham office as part of the firm's expansion in the East Midlands. Most recently, Moat worked at Fiscal Engineers Limited in Nottingham where he spent seven years as a financial planner.

AXA Investment Managers appointed Rémi Lambert as chief investment officer for Architas. Based in Paris and reporting to Matthieu André, chief executive officer of Architas, Lambert took over from Jaime Arguello, who retired. Prior to this role, he was CIO of Architas France for over 10 years.

Investec Wealth & Investment (UK) appointed Kirsty Cartwright as investment director in its Birmingham office. Cartwright previously worked at RBC Brewin Dolphin in Birmingham, where she was responsible for client assets covering general investment accounts, individual savings accounts, trusts, self-invested personal pensions, and offshore bonds. 

The investment company, Gravis Capital Management appointed Sam Slator as marketing director. She joined from Chelsea Financial Services where she spent 12 years as head of communications, working in fund research and markets as well as launching FundCalibre, an independent online fund research ratings agency. 

Phil Cliff joined Fidelity International as director, sustainable investing with a focus on climate integration. Previously head of climate at M&G Investments, Cliff led the climate strategy and transition plan, including the creation of the firm’s net zero investment framework, portfolio analytics tool, scenario modelling and climate reporting.

Aaron Hay joined as director, sustainable investing with a focus on ESG integration within the firm’s private credit strategies. Previously, Hay worked at Federated Hermes where he was responsible for investee stewardship, sustainable and impact investment strategy, and co-managing a growing sustainable fixed income team.

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Asia-Pacific

Deutsche Bank made a raft of senior appointments in Asia and the Middle East. 

Sub-regional coverage continued under the existing structure but Africa coverage was consolidated to become “Global South Asia & Africa (GSA&A).” This married the bank’s Non-Resident Indians East Africa coverage with Paul Sayers’ team covering South and West Africa.

Esther Wong was named head of institutional wealth management and family offices. She is market head within Southeast Asia, based in Singapore and leads the institutional wealth management initiative. Elsewhere, Rajesh Madahevan remained head of global South Asia and Africa (GSA&A) (based in Dubai). Johanes Oeni stayed as head of wealth management for Southeast Asia (based in Singapore); Kanas Chan remained as head of wealth management – North Asia (based in Hong Kong); and Amit Bhatia stayed on as head of wealth management – India Onshore (based in Dubai).

Julius Baer appointed four senior bankers, based in Switzerland, to serve clients linked to Asia-Pacific region:

Fernando Kresna Baay, team head, APAC Switzerland. Baay reports to Christian Cappelli, head of APAC Switzerland. He joined from Credit Suisse where he was mostly recently a senior relationship manager covering Singapore, Australia, Indonesia and Malaysia. He was previously at Citi Private Bank where he spent 17 years as a RM. Abraham Ara and Jacqlyn Mak, who joined the team, both came from Credit Suisse. Christophe Amadieu, senior RM, joined the team and reports to Gideon Dessauer, team head of APAC Switzerland. Amadieu was previously at UBS where he spent 14 years as a RM.

Bank of Singapore appointed Harjeet Singh and Mohan Subramaniam as market heads to the support growth of its non-resident India business in Southeast Asia. They report to Rodney Sin, who oversees the NRI segment in the region, on top of his responsibilities as global market head of Greater China and North Asia, including Japan.

Brookfield Oaktree Wealth Solutions, an alternative investments house, appointed client relationship managers for its Asia-Pacific team. The North America-listed business hired Mandy Lee and Nobuhiro Sato, based in Singapore and Tokyo respectively. Lee, who oversees Southeast Asia distribution, joined with more than 18 years of experience and links with wealth, asset management, and global markets. She most recently served as co-head of Asia private bank distribution at Blackrock. Sato joined from Schroders Investment Management (Japan) Limited, where he was a senior RM covering Japanese distributor groups. 

BNY Mellon appointed Nelius De Groot as head of markets and execution services for Asia Pacific. Based in Singapore, De Groot leads the growth strategy and direction of the markets and execution services business for the region. He has more than 30 years’ experience in capital markets and transaction banking, previously serving in senior leaderships roles with Standard Chartered Bank, Deutsche Bank and other major global institutions in London, New York and Singapore. 

Charles Russell Speechlys appointed Stephen Chan as a partner in its litigation and dispute resolution department. Chan joined the firm’s Hong Kong office from Ince & Co in Hong Kong.

TMF Group appointed Tim Houghton as global head of private wealth and family office services. Houghton, who reports to Daniel Max, TMF Group’s head of global solutions, also works with Aynsley Vaughan, who continued as the global leader for the group’s GEM services. Houghton joined the provider of compliance and administrative services, TMF Group, in March 2019. James Coughlan became the sole market head for the British Isles and Ireland (BII) market, reporting to Frank Welman, TMF Group’s Head of EMEA.

Stewart Investors appointed Elizabeth Trinh as head of institutional distribution, Asia-Pacific. Trinh joined from American Century Investments, where she spent nearly 14 years in a number of leadership roles across Asia-Pacific. Most recently, Trinh was head of American Century Investment Management (Asia-Pacific).

Harneys Fiduciary appointed Joe Cheung as the managing director of its Hong Kong office. Prior to this, he managed the Hong Kong office of Equiom, a global private client trust company. He also worked at Vistra and the Sovereign Group.

BNP Paribas Wealth Management appointed Kate Lin as head of wealth management for Taiwan from October, replacing Tina Hsieh who retired. Lin, who has more than 25 years of experience in the banking industry, leads the wealth management Taiwan onshore teams. She served as Taiwan head of consumer, private and business banking at Standard Chartered Bank Taiwan for seven years. Prior to that, she was Taiwan sales and distribution director at Citibank, where she began her career. Lin reports to Arnaud Tellier, and functionally to Manon Breuvart. She succeeded Tina Hsieh, who retired in October.

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T Rowe Price appointed Nicholas Tong as the head of Southeast Asia intermediary distribution. Tong is based in Singapore. Most recently he worked at Wellington Management where he was a vice president responsible for developing business with strategic private and retail banking clients in Singapore. Previously, he served in distribution roles at UBS Asset Management, PIMCO, and M&G Investments.

Manulife Investment Management named Kenny Lam as chief investment officer and head of transactions, Asia-Pacific real estate. Lam first joined Manulife Investment Management in 2017 as head of Asia real estate investments, after which he took on the role of chief investment officer (strategic investment) at Link REIT in 2022.

Bank of America named Gautam Puntambekar as the country head for Malaysia. He previously led the firm’s Corporate Banking Subsidiaries (CBK-S) regional banking team in Singapore. He joined the bank in India in 2005, and moved to Singapore in 2012. Puntambekar reports to Jin Su, Asia-Pacific president.

DWS, the asset manager, appointed Koichiro Obu as head of real estate, Japan in addition to his role as head of real estate research, Asia-Pacific. Obu reports to Singapore-based Christopher Kimm, head of real estate, Asia-Pacific. He has retained his existing reporting line to London-based Simon Wallace, global co-head of real estate research, EMEA and APAC. Obu joined DWS in 2007.

Matthews Asia appointed Sean Taylor as chief investment officer. Taylor, who has over 25 years of global experience within the investment management industry, joined from DWS Group where he was most recently chief investment officer APAC and head of emerging markets. Taylor’s appointment followed Robert Horrocks, PhD, chief investment officer and portfolio manager’s decision to step back from his current leadership responsibilities. 

Raffles Family Office appointed former Deutsche Bank senior figure Kevin King as managing director, head of greater China. King, who has almost 20 years’ experience working with Chinese business founders, was market head for China at Deutsche Bank International Private Bank. Previously, he was head of wealth management, China Market at BNP Paribas. He also spent 10 years with Citi Private Bank before joining BNP. Based in Hong Kong, he reports to Chi-man Kwan, group CEO and RFO’s founder.

Nomura appointed former senior Deutsche Bank figure Anurag Mahesh to join its international wealth management arm. Based in Singapore, Mahesh is responsible for the business’s client relationship management teams for Southeast Asia, global South Asia and the Middle East. The role is a newly-created post.

Capital Group named two fixed income investment directors as part of its Asia-Pacific team. Manusha Samaraweera is fixed income investment director for APAC ex-Japan, and based in Singapore. He has about 15 years of experience, most recently as fixed income and ESG strategist at PIMCO, where he represented its global fixed income and ESG investment solutions to Asian clients.

Haran Karunakaran, who was a director in Capital Group’s investment product services team in Singapore, was appointed fixed income investment director for APAC with a focus on Australia; he relocated to Sydney. Karunakaran has 18 years of industry experience and has been with Capital Group for two years, joining from PIMCO where he was senior vice president and fixed income strategist.

OCBC – parent of Bank of Singapore – made high-level leadership changes affecting ASEAN-Greater China coverage. Wang Ke, chief executive of OCBC Wing Hang China, became head of Greater China, succeeding Tan Wing Ming, who returned to Singapore as an advisor to the Group CEO. Ang Eng Siong, deputy president and head of corporate banking at OCBC Wing Hang China, became the acting CEO of that operation. 

Wang joined the OCBC Group in 2012 as the head of IT in China; his responsibilities were expanded to include operations in 2014. He was appointed the head of Pearl River Delta region in 2017, then became CEO of OCBC Wing Hang China in 2019. Ang has been with OCBC since 2009. He spent six years in Singapore in various roles across risk management, finance and business development. As part of OCBC’s talent development programme, Ang moved from Singapore to China in 2015. He was appointed China’s chief risk officer in 2018 and head of corporate banking in 2022. 

M&G Investments appointed Amy Cho as Asia-Pacific head and CEO of M&G Investments Singapore, subject to regulatory approval. Cho was most recently CEO of Hong Kong, and deputy head of Asia-Pacific at Schroders. She succeeded Loretta Ng who decided to leave M&G to pursue personal aspirations. Before joining Schroders in 2018, Cho held senior positions at Pictet Asset Management, First State Investments, HSBC Asset Management and Citibank.

UBS appointed new business sector heads for its wealth business in Thailand and the Philippines: Boriboon Niyomsathien serves as BSH for global wealth management Thailand and Robert Rohner is BSH for the Philippines. Niyomsathien has been at the Swiss bank for almost 18 years.

Benno Klingenberg-Timm, a former senior UBS figure, was appointed by California-headquartered Capital Group as head of its institutional Europe and Asia client group. He is based in Singapore. Prior to Capital Group, he worked at UBS for a total of 21 years in various roles, most recently (since June 2023), as head of the institutional and global sovereign markets group for Asia-Pacific, and held the post of managing director.

Deutsche Bank appointed Ted Lim as managing director and cluster head for Southeast Asia. The firm also named Jean Koh as a vice president, also reporting to Eleanor Lam, one of the market heads of SEA. They are based in Singapore.

JP Morgan appointed one of its own, Harshika Patel, to be the new chief executive of its Asia private bank. Patel took the slot vacated by KIam Shing Kwang, who became north Asia chair at the US group. Kwang was CEO of the Asia private bank for more than six years. Patel reports to Martin Marron, CEO of the international private bank and Filippo Gori, CEO of JP Morgan in Asia-Pacific, regionally. Before taking on this post, Patel worked at the JP Morgan corporate and investment banking business in Asia. She retained her existing role as CEO of JP Morgan Hong Kong. Patel, who is also head of strategy, Asia at the bank, joined JP Morgan in 2013. Kwang reports to Gori. She has been with the firm for 25 years, and has held a variety of senior positions between Hong Kong and Singapore.

Citigroup named Johanna Chua as its new head of emerging markets economic research. She remains in Hong Kong and took over from London-based David Lubin. Chua joined the US banking group in 2000 and has been head of its economics team across the pan-Asia region since 2009, including China, India, and Korea.
 

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North America
One of the most prominent names in North America’s wealth sector, Rudy Adolf, stepped down as CEO of Focus Financial Partners. Dan Glaser, chairman of its board, was made interim CEO. Focus said Glaser’s role was in addition to his position as chairman of Focus' board of directors and operating partner at Focus' majority investment partner, Clayton, Dubilier & Rice.

 

Morgan Stanley’s co-president, Edward Pick is to be its new CEO from the start of 2024, taking over from James Gorman, who is standing down after 14 years in the job. He is due to be executive chairman at the US firm.

In other moves, co-president Andy Saperstein became the head of wealth and investment management, and Dan Simkowitz became co-president of Morgan Stanley and the head of institutional securities. 

Gary Stamp & Co, Principled Wealth Advisors, appointed Michael Reed as chief of staff and chief strategic officer. Reed was chief operating officer and managing member of Dakota Wealth Management, a registered investment advisor in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. 

Axtella, a parent company of Sigma Planning Corporation – the RIA – and broker-dealers, appointed Rob Engle as chief revenue officer. Engle joined from Grove Point Financial. It also promoted Kristi DeLongchamp to SVP of business development – who reports to Engle. Maria Bethel was promoted SVP of marketing, communications.

Savvy Advisors, a US registered investment advisor affiliated with Savvy Wealth, appointed Erich Yost and Ryan Bond as principal wealth managers. Yost and Bond are based in the Greater Philadelphia area. Prior to the new role, Yost worked at Veritable, LP, where he was a portfolio manager. Yost has more than 12 years’ industry experience. Bond serves a client base made up of primarily high net worth investors and joins from Empower (formerly Personal Capital), where he worked as a senior financial advisor. 

Financial advisor Nicole Boulais joined the independent channel of Ameriprise Financial from Raymond James where she managed $170 million in client assets. Boulais joined an established Ameriprise practice, The McCulla Group, in Pella, Iowa, which is led by Ameriprise private wealth advisor Matthew McCulla.

New York-based Canoe Intelligence made five senior hires in the US, predominantly in New York. The new senior hires included Jamie Slusher as director of client project management. She previously spent over 20 years in the healthcare industry. Hires also included Jeffrey Lin as director of product management, data products; Jordan Robbins was appointed as head of revenue operations; Mark Rossi is senior director of business development, and Peter Feliciano was named director, extraction Architecture & AI/ML. 

PGIM Investments appointed Dominick Carlino as global head of alternative investments, based in Newark, New Jersey. He reports to Stuart Parker, president and CEO of PGIM Investments. Carlino has more than 20 years of experience in alternatives distribution across asset and wealth management. Most recently, he served as managing director, head of alternative investments distribution at Merrill Lynch.

Cresta Fund Management, which provides growth equity for conventional and sustainable forms, promoted John Skrinar to partner in Cresta's sustainable investing strategy. Skrinar, who joined Cresta in early 2021, has worked in the renewable fuels industry for over 15 years. 

SLC Management, the $273 billion institutional fixed income and alternatives asset manager, reshuffled its private fixed income team. Sam Tillinghast, head of private fixed income, SLC Management, said he intended to resign, effective December 31. Tillinghast joined SLC Management in 2018. Prior to this, he was co-CEO of THL Credit Advisors. Tillinghast was head of the private placement group for AIG.

Carson Group appointed Julie Pine as its chief legal officer. In this newly-created role, Pine reports to Teri Shepherd, president of Carson Group. In prior roles, Pine was general counsel and chief risk officer at Lead Bank, Kansas City. In earlier roles, she was a commercial litigator and equity shareholder at McDowell, Rice, Smith & Buchanan, before she became general counsel at Mariner Wealth Advisors.

The global family office arm of Rockefeller Capital Management added two private advisor teams in the DC metro area and Los Angeles. It welcomed Shaffer Wealth Partners (DC metro area), and Willis Wealth Partners (LA). Shaffer Wealth Partners is led by managing director and private advisor Sheila Shaffer. The four-person team, which joined from Janney Montgomery Scott, includes senior vice president and private advisor Eric Walker; VP and wealth manager Daniel Spainhour; and associate VP and client associate Allyson Albert.

Sheila Shaffer, who has more than 35 years of financial service experience, began her career at Merrill Lynch in 1983 and worked in corporate, management, and financial advisory roles at other firms, among them Legg Mason, Smith Barney (Morgan Stanley), and JMS. Eric Walker has worked with Shaffer since 2015, providing comprehensive financial advice to discerning clients. Prior to joining the practice, he worked at Morgan Stanley and Pulte Mortgage. The team reports to Kristen Sario, Southeast divisional director.

Willis Wealth Partners – led by MD and private advisor Matt Willis – includes SVP and private advisor Frank Willis; VPs and private advisors Neil Martin and Patrick Digenan; and senior client associate Claudia Ramirez. The five-person group joined from Wells Fargo and will report to Brian Riley, Western divisional director.

Stratos Wealth Holdings appointed Gary Kuhn as national business development manager. Kuhn has more than a decade of business development and financial advisor talent acquisition experience. He started his career in 2013 with MetLife Premier Client Group and later, MassMutual, with its 2016 acquisition of MetLife's advisory unit. Most recently, Kuhn was business development manager for Nesco Resource, focusing on the fintech and financial services fields.
 
FutureVault, which provides secure document exchange and digital vault solutions for financial services and wealth managers, appointed Clifton Schaller as its chief growth officer. Schaller worked at Capital One, Morningstar, and Nitrogen Wealth (formerly Riskalyze).

The Boston-based private wealth management firm, Fiduciary Trust Company, hired Thomas Nonnweiler as a vice president and investment officer. Nonnweiler reporta to Sidney Queler, head of wealth management. Prior to Fiduciary, Nonnweiler served as a vice president in the Private Client Group for SCS Financial, where he worked closely with ultra-HNW individuals and multi-generational families on all aspects of wealth planning and investment management. 

Steward Partners Global Advisory, part of Steward Partners, brought Sunshine Private Wealth into its orbit, a business based in Sarasota, Florida. The firm is led by Faiza Kedir. The team, formerly with Hightower, manages about $170 million in client assets and is Steward's third office in Florida, continuing the firm's planned expansion in that state. Kedir began her career as a financial advisor when she joined Hightower, where she was director, business development, and financial advisor.

Rockefeller Global Family Office, the wealth management division of Rockefeller Capital Management, added Bridgeline Wealth Partners, a four-person team based in Atlanta, Georgia. The group – formerly from UBS – reports to Kristen Sario, Southeast divisional director of Rockefeller Global Family Office. Bridgeline, which is led by managing directors and private advisors Travis Propst and J Trent Douglas, includes senior wealth and investment strategy associate Ryan Brady and senior client relationship manager Jaimie Crook. Rockefeller

Philanthropy Advisors appointed Latanya Mapp Frett as its next president and CEO, succeeding Melissa Berman in the role she founded. Frett serves as president and CEO of Global Fund for Women, a public foundation that supports courageous activists who are fighting for justice and equality in their communities.

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Pathstone, the US family office, appointed Jim CoutrĂ© as a new managing director and head of the wealth planning. He will be based in Pathstone’s Boston office. CoutrĂ© was previously the vice president of insights and connections for Fidelity Family Office Services, a segment of Fidelity Institutional. 

TwinFocus, the multifamily office for global ultra-high net worth professional investors, appointed former BNY Mellon CIO David Daglio as chief investment officer, based in Boston, where the organization is headquartered. He spent 22 years at Mellon, an investment firm that merged with the Bank of New York to become BNY Mellon in 2007. Most recently, Daglio was CEO and founder of BC-GUMPS – an asset manager focused on delivering hard-to-find arbitrage opportunities to sophisticated and ultra-high net worth investors.

The California-headquartered firm, SageView Advisory Group, hired Matt Cosgriff as senior vice president, head of wealth management advisory services, and Sophie Benander as vice president of wealth management client experience. They report to chief operating officer Jorge Bernal, who joined SageView in 2022.

Fiduciary Trust International appointed Kenneth Kito as a wealth director, based in New York. Kito used to work at Franklin Templeton as a territory specialist for US retail distribution in Greater Philadelphia and New Jersey. He came to Franklin Templeton via its acquisition of Legg Mason in 2020. Earlier in his career, he was a portfolio manager for Merrill Lynch. In his new role Kito reports to Anne Fitzpatrick Donahue, regional managing director responsible for Fiduciary Trust International’s New York office.

US law firm Lowenstein Sandler appointed Michael D Saarinen to join its investment management group as a partner in its New York office. Saarinen, who is the co-chair of Lowenstein's fund formation and structuring group, has more than two decades of experience representing US and global fund sponsors in a wide range of fund offerings and products. Prior to this role, Saarinen was formerly a partner in Shearman & Sterling's investment funds practice. 

Freestone Capital Management appointed Jonathan Wittlin to join a team of 26 advisors in its San Franciso office. He reports to Jim Hughes, head of client advisory. Wittlin brings more than 20 years of experience in assisting high net worth clients with their financial planning and investment management needs. He was most recently with a San Francisco registered investment advisor. 

Raymond James welcomed financial advisor Barbara Paneral to Raymond James & Associates (RJA) – the firm's employee advisor channel – in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Paneral arrived from Baird, where she previously managed over $134 million in client assets. 

Wealth, investment and asset management firm Baird brought in the Berg Group of Dallas, Texas. Team members include Joel Berg, who joined Baird as a director and financial advisor, and Robert Berg, who joined as a vice president and consultant. 

Helios, a US firm that says it is a pioneer of the “insourced chief investment officer” model, appointed former senior BlackRock figure Corin Frost as a managing director. A 22-year veteran of the investment and portfolio management space, Frost retired from Blackrock in 2016 having spent almost 16 years at the firm. 

Raymond James
The financial institutions arm of Raymond James welcomed advisors Manny Jimenez and Jacob Wright to Pinnacle Asset Management, the wealth management arm of Pinnacle Financial Partners. Pinnacle is affiliated with Raymond James. They are based at the Pinnacle Mount Pleasant, South Carolina office. They previously managed about $186 million in client assets at Truist Investment Services.  

Raymond James brought in financial advisor Jonathan “JD” Swart to the firm’s independent advisor channel. At Swart Financial Partners headquartered in Wilmington, North Carolina, Swart is joined by senior client service associate Amanda Schedler. Swart was previously from Edward Jones.

Raymond James brought in a total of 50 financial professionals from Columbia Wealth Advisors (CWA), located at Umpqua Bank. The team works in the financial institutions division. Based in Lake Oswego, Oregon, Umpqua Bank has offices in Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah and Washington. CWA manages about $3 billion in client assets, serving both businesses and individuals. They were previously affiliated with Cetera Investment Services.