Weekly roundup of people news, Nov 3
SUN LIFE AM HK NAMES FELIX HO AS NEW CIO
Sun Life Asset Management Hong Kong named Felix Ho as the new chief investment officer (CIO), the company told AsianInvestor.
Ho succeeded Zita Chung, who left Sun Life for AIA Investment Management in September.
Ho leads the portfolio management team of Sun Life’s Hong Kong MPF scheme, according to his LinkedIn profile.
He was previously portfolio management director, managing equity funds for Sun Life’s Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) scheme in Hong Kong.
Ho has over 15 years of experience in the financial industry. He has been with Sun Life for over five years.
AsianInvestor was unable to ascertain Ho’s reporting line as of publication.
Stanley Ngan is the chief executive officer of Sun Life Asset Management Hong Kong.
AMUNDI HK CEO STEPS DOWN
Amundi’s Hong Kong CEO Kerry Ching has stepped down from the firm, AsianInvestor can reveal.
‘We confirm that Kerry Ching left Amundi on 31 Oct, 2023,” a spokesperson for Amundi told AsianInvestor. The spokesperson did not respond to a query on who succeeds Ching.
The French asset manager hired Ching from Australian investment firm AMP Capital Asia in June 2021.
She has previously worked with Fidelity Investment Management, and UBS Global Asset Management.
MIRAE ASSET'S HONG KONG-BASED CIO LEAVES
Rahul Chadha, chief investment officer at Mirae Asset Global Investments (Hong Kong) has left the firm, AsianInvestor understands.
Chadha stepped down at the end of September, based on the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission license website.
Chadha joined the Korean asset manager in April 2006. He initially managed the India funds and in 2010, began managing Asia Pacific products.
Johee An has succeeded him in the role, according to Mirae’s website. AsianInvestor was unable to ascertain when she was appointed CIO.
An joined Mirae in Korea in 2006 as an investment analyst and later transferred to the Hong Kong unit to take up the role of portfolio manager.
She is lead portfolio manager on several Asia Pacific equity funds, including the firm’s flagship funds.
BNP PARIBAS AM NAMES NEW HK CEO
BNP Paribas Asset Management has appointed Peggy Lee as Hong Kong chief executive officer, subject to regulatory approval, and Asia Pacific chief marketing officer, effective November 8.
She succeeds previous APAC CMO Guillaume Wehry, who will be relocating to Europe to take on another role within the group.
She replaces Rakesh Vengayil in the HK CEO role, a spokesperson told AsianInvestor. Vengayil left last year, the spokesperson added.
Lee, based in Hong Kong, reports locally to Mike Nikou, BNP Paribas AM’s Asia Pacific CEO, and functionally to London-based Paul Van Eynde, global CMO.
Lee joins from Manulife Investment Management, where she was the global head of retail marketing and chief marketing officer for Asia.
She has also previously worked with HSBC, Standard Chartered Bank and Allianz Global Investors.
PRIME SUPER SEEKS NEW CEO
Melbourne-based superannuation fund, Prime Super is on the hunt for a new CEO as the current chief executive, Lachlan Baird, prepares to depart after almost 20 years.
Baird, who oversaw significant growth and three mergers, will step down next month.
In the interim, operating chief Remo Memmolo will be the head while the fund searches for a permanent replacement.
Baird has had a long career in the superannuation industry, including roles at KPMG, Superpartners, and Host Plus.
Memmolo, the incoming acting CEO, has previously held positions at BlackRock and Merrill Lynch.
GENZERO ADDS TO BOARD
GenZero has appointed Peter Bakker to its board of directors effective November 1.
GenZero’s board is led by Chairman Sunny Verghese and its members include Goh Swee Chen, Dr Steve Howard, Ruth Nussbaum and Alan Thompson.
Bakker has led the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), based in Geneva, Switzerland as president and CEO.
WBCSD is the global, CEO-led community of the world’s leading sustainable businesses working collectively to accelerate the system transformations needed for a net-zero, nature-positive, and more equitable future.
Bakker serves as a member of several corporate sustainability advisory boards.
Notable ones include being a member of the advisory board for integrity and corporate responsibility at Mercedes-Benz Group and a member of the Sustainability and Impact Forum at UBS.
GenZero is an investment platform focused on accelerating decarbonisation globally and is founded by Temasek.
DL FAMILY OFFICE HIRES MD FROM MORGAN STANLEY
Hong Kong-headquartered multifamily office DL Family Office hired Ann Yu as managing director, overseeing family office clients' discretionary mandates and managing investment strategies in an effort to expand the firm’s capacities.
In the newly created role, Yu will report to Crystal He, chief executive officer of DL Family Office.
Based in Hong Kong, Yu has over 15 years of experience in international investment banks, including Morgan Stanley, UBS, and JPMorgan.
Most recently, she was executive director for private wealth management at Morgan Stanley for over two years, serving ultra-high net worth clients, listed companies and family offices from Greater China.
DL Family Office is looking to hire another three to five professionals next year in portfolio management and client relationship management.
DWS HIRES NEW JAPAN HEAD
DWS has appointed Hiroki Wiesheu as president and head of coverage, Japan, effective November 1, 2023.
He reports to Vanessa Wang, head of Asia Pacific and head of coverage, Asia Pacific.
Hiroaki Ishitani has been interim CEO and head of client coverage at DWS Japan. He will stay with the company until the end of the year, a spokesperson told AsianInvestor.
Wiesheu joins DWS Japan from Metzler Asset Management Japan.
He was the firm’s president and chief executive ffficer and a board member at Metzler-Payden and Metzler Realty Advisors in the US. Wiesheu left Metzler Asset Management Japan on October 31, a spokesperson told AsiaInvestor.
Mitsuhiro Sato and Nina Birke-Wiesheu will take over the management of Metzler Asset Management Japan as dual leadership from January 1, 2024. Sato is the new president while Birke-Wiesheu will be deputy president. Birke-Wiesheu joined the company on September 15, the spokesperson added.
Wieshu previously worked with Rothschild in Frankfurt and with Commerzbank in London and Frankfurt.
KPMG APPOINTS GLOBAL ESG LEAD
KPMG has promoted Geri McMahon to lead its environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives for its asset management business worldwide.
“I’m happy to share that I’m starting a new position as Global ESG Leader, Asset Management at KPMG,” McMahon posted on her LinkedIn on November 2.
McMahon relocated to Sydney to join KPMG Australia in January 2023 as a partner in its climate change and sustainability team.
In March, she became the firm’s national ESG leader for asset and wealth management.
She previously spent 13 years living and working in London and was co-head of responsible investment at Aon where she led a diverse, multi-disciplinary team of ESG specialists in providing investment advice to UK institutional investors.
KPMG did not respond to AsianInvestor’s requests for comment at the time of publication.
MSCI APPOINTS JAPAN, SOUTH AND SOUTHEAST ASIA CLIENTS HEADS
Ryoya Terasawa was named head of Japan client coverage, effective October 30, while Chitra Hepburn was appointed head of South and Southeast Asia client coverage, effective October 16.
Based in Tokyo, Terasawa will lead MSCI’s commercial activities in Japan, manage key client relationships and deliver a solutions-driven approach for Japanese clients.
Terasawa will report to Kazuya Nagasawa, head of Asia-Pacific client coverage.
Terasawa previously spent over 20 years at JP Morgan. Most recently, he was the firm's head of Japan sales and marketing, covering Japanese institutional clients.
Hepburn’s role is an expansion of her current responsibilities as head of Asia-Pacific ESG and climate client coverage. She remains based in Singapore and reports to Kazuya Nagasawa.
Hepburn joined MSCI over four years ago.
MSCI did not respond to an AsianInvestor enquiry on whether the two roles were newly created, and who oversaw these responsibilities prior to the two hires.