Weekly roundup of people news, July 5
HARVEST APPOINTS DALE AS EUROPE CEO IN EXPANDED ROLE
Harvest Global Investments, the international arm of China’s Harvest Fund Management, has installed Ashley Dale as chief executive for Europe, the Middle East and North Africa as well as global head of sales, AsianInvestor can reveal.
He has just relocated to London from Hong Kong for the newly combined position, which was effective from July 1. In Hong Kong, Dale had spent three years as Harvest GI’s chief business development and chief marketing officer, a position that has been retitled as global head of sales.
Dale succeeds Peter Lindqvist, the previous UK CEO of Harvest GI, who left the firm in mid-May, having worked there since April 2016. Lindqvist declined to comment on his next move when contacted by AsianInvestor.
Shifting the global sales role to the UK is a statement of intent to underscore Harvest’s international ambitions, Dale said. “It is important to be on the ground to show commitment to the markets where our clients are based.”
Harvest is seeing increased interest in Chinese equities and bonds, Dale said, especially now that the country represents a far larger weighting in global indices. Indeed, some investors are now looking at China as a dedicated allocation rather than merely as a component of emerging markets, he added.
Dale had said in 2017 that Harvest would consider adding another office in Europe amid concerns over the UK's vote to leave the European Union, but it has not done so as yet. “Our UK office [which was set up in 2015] should continue to serve its purpose as our European HQ,” he told AsianInvestor.
Before joining Harvest in July 2016, Dale oversaw business development and marketing at Mirae Asset Global Investments, the international arm of Korea’s Mirae Asset. His career has also included stints at equity brokerage CLSA and French bank Societe Generale, among others.
ENFUSION HIRES MIKE LANGTON FROM RIVAL LINEDATA
Linedata, an investment management software and services firm, has seen its Asia-Pacific head of sales leave to join rival vendor Chicago-based Enfusion, AsianInvestor can reveal.
Mike Langton joined Enfusion on July 2 as Asia-Pacific head of sales for outsourced services and remains in Hong Kong for the newly created role. He reports to Matt McGarry, Chicago-based global head of outsourced services.
Langton had worked at Linedata and previously Quality Risk Management and Operations (QRMO) – the outsourcing firm it acquired in August 2017 – since July 2006 in Hong Kong.
Enfusion created the new post because it saw growing demand for outsourced services across back-office, middle-office and risk management, Langton told AsianInvestor. Bob Feng, director of Asia Pacific, had previously been looking after this area as part of his remit.
Most of the firm’s client base comprises hedge fund firms, Langton said. However, he added, it has some large family office clients globally and has been working with sovereign wealth funds, endowments and other asset owners, and is looking to increase its coverage of other institutional investors.
EQT PARTNERS ASIA DIRECTOR EXITS
Angel Kong, director of Eqt Partners’ Hong Kong office has left the Swedish private equity firm, AsianInvestor can reveal.
Kong was formerly based in Hong Kong but departed on June 30, the firm’s spokeswoman told AsianInvestor. She added that the Hong Kong team will pick up her duties while any hiring will be considered part of the broader team build-out.
PURPLE ASSET MANAGEMENT NAMES MANAGING DIRECTOR
London-based Purple Asset Management has named Johan Jooste as a managing director servicing ultra-high-net-worth clients and family offices, effective July 1.
Jooste moves from Bank of Singapore where he spent three years, first as chief investment officer and then as head of rates when Rajeev de Mello came in as CIO.
Jooste’s role is a newly created one as Purple AM builds out its team following its launch in October 2017. He will provide discretionary fund management and independent financial market research to clients.
He will remain in Singapore, reporting to Purple AM’s chief executive, Gary Dugan, who joined in November last year and is also based in the Lion City.
Dugan told AsianInvestor that he had also worked with Jooste in the past at Merrill Lynch Wealth Management in London. Jooste's strong experience in fixed income will be particularly valuable for Purple AM, Dugan added.
Purple AM is a joint venture with The Fry Group, a financial advisory firm, and ISG, a fintech asset management business, both of which are based in London.
PICTET AM CONFIRMS WATKINS AS ASIA CEO
Pictet Asset Management has confirmed the July 2 arrival of Junjie Watkins to replace Amy Cho – an appointment first reported by AsianInvestor in April.
However, Watkins has been hired as chief executive for Asia excluding Japan, a different title from that held by Cho, who was managing director for Asia, though the coverage and responsibilities remain the same.
Cho left the Swiss fund house in November to join UK rival Schroders in December as CEO for its Hong Kong business.
Based in Hong Kong, Watkins assumes responsibility for all business development and client-related matters in the region, with management oversight of all other activities, the asset manager said. She reports to Niall Quinn, London-based global head of institutional business.
Watkins was previously head of investment solutions for Asia at US asset manager TCW.
Pictet AM also confirmed that Heather Bao will start on July 15 in Hong Kong as a senior sales manager for Asia excluding Japan, covering institutional clients, said a spokeswoman. Bao also joined from TCW and will continue to report to Watkins in her new post.
Bao will work with two other sales colleagues on the institutional sales team, including Teck Ng.
This story has been amended to reflect the fact that Junjie Watkins' responsibilities are the same as those held previously by Amy Cho.
VONTOBEL WM LOSES ASIA HEAD OF IM
Stephan Kolz left his role as head of investment management and chief operating officer for Asia at Vontobel Wealth Management and has been replaced by Steven Ng, formerly an investment adviser at the Swiss firm.
Kolz left the Hong Kong-based role in January, having relocated in July last year from Vontobel in Zurich, where he was a senior relationship manager.
HSBC PB NAMES THAILAND MARKET HEAD
HSBC Private Banking has appointed Veronica Toh as Singapore-based desk head for Thailand.
A spokeswoman declined to comment further on the details of Toh’s role and whom she reports to.
She will be moving on from JP Morgan Private Bank, where she was an executive director for Singapore and Malaysia markets based in Singapore, a JP Morgan spokeswoman said.
The spokeswoman declined to comment on when Toh left or whether she had been replaced.
SINGAPORE WEALTHTECH FIRM EXPANDS INTO THAILAND
WeInvest, a Singapore-based wealthtech firm, has expanded into Thailand, naming Yenruedee Chanwirawong as a senior project manager in Bangkok. She will lead local strategic operations, as the digital wealth solutions provider moves to grow its regional presence.
The firm was unable to reply to AsianInvestor's query about what previous roles she had held or any other relevant information.
WeInvest recently expanded to Hong Kong and the United Aran Emirates to add to its operations in India, Indonesia and Malaysia. The company's new Thai team is comprised of developers and project managers deployed on a rotational basis operating out of its partners’ offices.
WeInvest aims to set up local offices in Bangkok by the fourth quarter of 2019.