Asia Asset Management Q3 2020

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ASIA ASSET MANAGEMENT Q3 2020

A Sheffield Haworth Publication featuring people news, industry updates, market trends and analysis

Nick Aylwin-Foster George Windsor Emma Quan

ASIA ASSET MANAGEMENT – Q3 2020 CONTENTS

MARKET OVERVIEW pg 3

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT pg 5

LEADERSHIP pg 6

CHINA pg 8

INVESTMENT & PRODUCT pg 10

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ASIA ASSET MANAGEMENT – Q3 2020 MARKET OVERVIEW

INTRODUCTION

Another testing quarter for the asset management industry. The situation across much of Asia has continued to disrupt normal working patterns with most employees working remotely, amplifying the challenges of running a multi-faceted, international business. Despite these challenges, hiring activity has continued across a variety of functions indicating a willingness amongst managers to push through critical hires. Interestingly, hiring levels were slightly elevated against Q3 2019, although this is likely down to the lack of the summer ‘lull’ when decision makers typically take annual leave.

NEWS

▪ UOB Asset Management has partnered with FNZ Group to launch a robo- advisory mobile app for retail investors in Singapore. In similar news, Franklin Templeton in Singapore has partnered with Razer Fintech to roll out a digital wealth management platform to target millennials in Southeast Asia.

◼ Affin Hwang Asset Management has teamed up with Versa Asia Kuala, a Kuala Lumpur-based fintech firm, to launch a digital cash management platform via a mobile app.

▪ AIA Thailand has received licences for private fund management and mutual fund management from Thailand’s regulator for its newly formed investment management subsidiary, AIA Investment Management Thailand.

▪ CCB Principal Asset Management in Hong Kong has been awarded licenses for asset management (Type9) and advising on securities (Type4).

▪ Temasek has acquired a 3.9% stake in BlackRock.

ASIA ASSET MANAGEMENT – Q3 2020 ▪ Aberdeen Standard Investments has gained a Limited Broker, Dealer and Underwriter Licence (LBDU) from Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission. It enables ASI to offer offshore funds directly to domestic investors in the country.

IN ASIA, THE LOOSENING OF RESTRICTIONS IN SOME COUNTRIES IN THE PAST MONTH HAS PROVIDED SOME CAUTIOUS OPTIMISM.

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▪ T. Rowe Price has teamed up with Hong Kong-based insurance company FTLife to expand its distribution to the insurance industry.

▪ William Blair has announced the opening of a new office in Singapore.

▪ The world’s second largest asset manager Vanguard has announced its exit from Hong Kong as part of its strategic shift to mainland China.

▪ Canada’s Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board has opened an office in Singapore.

▪ AXA Investment Managers has appointed Capital Gateway Securities Consulting Enterprise as its new master agent in Taiwan. This follows the ending of its long partnership with Cathay Securities Investment Consulting a few months ago.

▪ European asset manager Privium Fund Management has opened an office in Singapore, after setting up its first office in Asia in Hong Kong 4 years ago.

▪ NN Investment Partners has acquired Dutch asset manager MN’s emerging markets debt (EMD) team as an expansion of its EMD capacity.

▪ BNY Mellon Investment Management has opened a new office in Taipei after receiving the Securities Investment Consulting Enterprise license from the Taiwanese regulator.

▪ First State Investments has formally rebranded to First Sentier Investors, following their acquisition by Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking from the Commonwealth Bank of Australia in August.

ASIA ASSET MANAGEMENT – Q3 2020 BUSINESS

DEVELOPMENT

An active quarter for business development, although many of the moves were necessitated by replacing outgoing individuals rather than growth hires. However, interest amongst the international asset management community in developing Asia distribution appears to be on the rise and may have been accelerated by the continued consolidation and margin pressure felt in home/core markets. This will put additional pressure on a tight market for talent in 2021 and beyond.

INSTITUTIONAL

SELECT PEOPLE MOVES

Principal Global Investors has appointed Lesley Lo as a Managing Director and Head of Institutional Sales for North Asia. Lesley was with Metlife Investment Management previously and will be based in Hong Kong.

Natixis Investment Managers has hired Herman Chan, previously with PineBridge Investments, as Head of Institutional Sales for Hong Kong and Macau. Herman will be based in Hong Kong.

BNY Mellon Investment Management has hired Barnaby Jones in their institutional sales team for Greater China. He was previously with M&G and will be based in Hong Kong.

PGIM Fixed Income has hired Helen Chang as Managing Director and Head of Asia- Pacific ex-Japan Client Advisory. Prior to joining the firm, Helen was with Principal Global Investors as Head of Greater China Institutional Sales. She will be based in Hong Kong in the new role.

American Century Investments has hired Kim Jun Ku to oversee institutional sales in Korea. Kim joins from Manulife Investment Management and will be based in Hong Kong.

Dymon Asia Capital has hired Colin Sim as a Director for its Business Development team. Colin joins from GSA Capital and will be based in Hong Kong.

ASIA ASSET MANAGEMENT – Q3 2020 WHOLESALE

SELECT PEOPLE MOVES

J.P. Morgan Asset Management has hired Stephanie Hak as a Manager in the private bank distribution team. Prior to this, she was with HSBC GAM and will be based in Hong Kong.

RELATED HIRES

Capital Group has appointed Alexandra Haggard as Head of Product and Investment Services for Asia and Europe. Alexandra was previously with BlackRock as the Global Head of Equity Product and EMEA Head of Strategic Pricing. Alexandra will be based in London.

SELECT LEADERSHIP MOVES

Dimensional Fund Advisors has appointed Joel Kim as CEO for its Asia ex-Japan business. Joel was most recently the firm’s Head of International Fixed Income, based in London and will relocate to Singapore.

BNP Paribas Asset Management has named Steven Billiet as its new Head of Asia- Pacific. He joined the firm earlier this year as Head of APAC Distribution and was previously J.P. Morgan Asset Management’s Singapore CEO. He will be based in Hong Kong.

Franklin Templeton has appointed Vivek Kudva as its Head of Asia-Pacific including India, based in Mumbai. He was most recently the Head of CEEMEA and India. The firm has also appointed Isabella Chan to Head of Hong Kong and Taiwan. Isabella was most recently Head of Global Financial Institutions for APAC and Head of Retail Business for Greater China.

Pheim Asset Management, a Malaysia-based asset manager, has named Teh Song Lai as Chief Executive Officer. He was previously CEO of the company’s wholly owned subsidiary Pheim Unit Trust.

Fulcrum Asset Management has appointed Tetsuaki Take as Head of its Japanese business. Tetsuaki was an Investment Director at Sumitomo bank previously and he will be based in Tokyo in this new role.

Eastspring Investments has appointed Adisorn Sermchaiwong as its Head of Thailand. He is now the CEO for both TMBAM Eastspring and Thanachart Fund Eastspring.

ASIA ASSET MANAGEMENT – Q3 2020 BNY Mellon Investment Management has appointed Rebecca Chu as Head of Taiwan. She was previously part of the institutional sales team and will relocate to Taiwan from Hong Kong.

BMO GAM has appointed June Lui as Head of Asia-Pacific. She will replace Ravi Sriskandarajah who left last month to join QIC. June has been with BMO for the last 13 years holding various investment roles.

ASIA ASSET MANAGEMENT – Q3 2020 CHINA

Despite the headwinds facing the asset management industry at a global level, the picture within China is robust. Q3 has seen a further uptick in activity and expansion from the previous quarter with much of the market operating under ‘normal conditions’. The attempts to internationalise the market and attract foreign capital continue and represent a core tenet of the CCP’s reforms, which appear to have been accelerated by COVID. Updates include the first approved mutual fund company licence, further approvals for PFM licenses across Shanghai, Beijing and the Greater Bay area, more joint ventures in partnership with wealth management arms under local banks and more. In keeping with last quarter, much of the hiring has come from newly established entities in growth mode, while the established platforms have been quieter in Q3.

NEWS

▪ Beijing-headquartered, Future FinTech Group, has announced it will acquire Hong Kong’s Nice Talent Asset Management.

▪ Winton Capital’s wholly foreign-owned subsidiary (WFOE) in Shanghai has partnered with Industrial Securities Futures to launch a private fund management (PFM) product.

▪ A number of firms have been awarded a PFM licence including Oaktree Capital’s Beijing office, Metori Capital in Zhuhai, Baillie Gifford in Shanghai and Power Sagard Investment Management in Shanghai.

▪ BlackRock has received approval from the China Securities Regulatory Commission to establish a wholly-owned mutual fund firm.

▪ Amundi and BOC Wealth Management has gained approval from the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission to establish its Shanghai- based asset management joint-venture. The entity, called Huihua Wealth Management plans to open for business in October.

▪ China’s regulators will be combining the qualified foreign institutional investor (QFII) and the renminbi qualified foreign institutional investor (RQFII) programmes into one scheme, effective 1 November.

▪ China has granted $3.36bn worth of quotas to 18 institutions under the Qualified Domestic Institutional Investor (QDII) scheme.

▪ The China Banking and Insurance Commission has approved a three-way wealth management joint venture between Temasek, BlackRock, and China

ASIA ASSET MANAGEMENT – Q3 2020 Construction Bank.

▪ Man AHL has received a qualified foreign institutional investor (QFII) license in China.

SELECT PEOPLE MOVES

Franklin Templeton has named Linda Liang as Head of China Strategy. She will oversee both the WFOE business and joint venture, Franklin Templeton Sealand Fund Management. Linda was most recently the firm’s Chief Administrative Officer for the emerging markets equity group. She will be based in Singapore in her new role.

HSBC Jintrust Fund Management has named Lihua Huang as Head of Active Equity. Previously, Lihua was an Executive Director of financial markets at CITIC. She will be based in Shanghai.

China Asset Management Hong Kong has appointed 12-year company veteran Gan Tian as CEO. Gan started his career at the firm as a Portfolio Manager and was most recently CIO and will be based in Hong Kong in the new role.

Robeco has promoted Jie Lu to Head of Investments for China. Jie joined the firm in 2015 as Head of China Research.

Vanguard has hired Dengpan Luo as General Manager for its China unit. Dengpan was previously with Da Cheng Fund Management as CEO and he will be based in Shanghai.

ASIA ASSET MANAGEMENT – Q3 2020 INVESTMENT & PRODUCT

Much of the hiring activity in Q3 has been in the alternative sector, particularly on the private side as managers look to expand, or begin, their deployment of capital in the region. As regulatory frameworks continue to evolve, the opportunity set in Asia is growing, reflected in the activity throughout 2020.

EQUITIES

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BNP Paribas Asset Management has promoted David Choa to Head of Greater China Equities. David was a portfolio manager before this and will continue to be based in Hong Kong.

The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) has hired Anuj Girotra as Head of Active Fundamental Equities and Relationship Investments for India. Anuj joins from Capital Group and will be based in Mumbai.

J.P. Morgan Asset Management has appointed Shizuko Ohmi as Head of Investment Stewardship for Japan. Shizuko joins from Amundi Japan, where she served as Head of Environment. She will be based in Tokyo.

Fidelity International has hired Victoria Mio as its new Director of Asian Equities. Victoria joins from Robeco where she was China CIO and Co-Head of Asia-Pacific Equities. She will be based in Hong Kong.

Artisan Partners has hired Tiffany Hsiao as a Managing Director and Portfolio Manager. Tiffany was a former China equity manager with Matthews Asia and she will be based in San Francisco in her new role.

State Street Global Advisors has hired Joanne Siu as Head of SPDR Exchange- Traded Funds (ETFs). Joanne was previously with Jupiter Asset Management as a Sales Director and will be based in Hong Kong.

ASIA ASSET MANAGEMENT – Q3 2020 FIXED INCOME

SELECT PEOPLE MOVES

HSBC Global Asset Management has appointed Luther Bryan Carter as Head of Global Emerging Market Debt. Previously, he was Head of EM Fixed Income for BNP Paribas Asset Management. Luther will be based in London in the new role.

William Blair has hired Clifford Lau as a Singapore-based Portfolio Manager in its emerging market debt team. Clifford joins from Columbia Threadneedle Investments, where he was Head of Fixed Income for Asia-Pacific.

MULTI-ASSET

SELECT PEOPLE MOVES

Allianz Global Investors has appointed Zijian Yang as its Head of Multi-Asset for Asia-Pacific. Zijian re-joins Allianz GI from AllianceBernstein, where he was a Senior Vice President for Multi-Asset Solutions. He will be based in Singapore. In addition, the firm has named Jingjing Chai as Head of Multi-Asset for Hong Kong and Taiwan. Jingjing was most recently a Portfolio Manager based in New York and will relocate to Hong Kong.

PRIVATE MARKETS AND HEDGE FUNDS

UPDATES

◼ South Korea’s National Pension Service and Keppel Capital Holdings, a Singapore based infrastructure investment firm, have partnered to invest in private infrastructure in Asia.

◼ Lightspeed Venture Partners has expanded to Southeast Asia with the opening of a Singapore office and plans to deploy capital across the region.

◼ PAG has bought a majority stake in India’s Edelweiss Wealth Management.

◼ Citadel has opened a new office in Singapore to expand its presence in Southeast Asian markets.

◼ Ares Management has announced its completion of its previously disclosed acquisition of a controlling interest in SSG Capital. The news business will be named Ares SSG.

◼ Allianz Global Investors has partners with the National Pension Service of Korea to establish a $2.3bn investment platform to build a diversified core portfolio of high-quality properties in Asia-Pacific.

◼ Schroders has agreed to purchase a controlling stake in the real estate

ASIA ASSET MANAGEMENT – Q3 2020 manager, Pamfleet. The new business will be renamed Schroders Pamfleet.

SELECT PEOPLE MOVES

Permodalan Nasional, Malaysia’s largest fund management company, has hired Ahmad Zulqarnain Onn to be its new Chief Executive Officer. He will be based in Kuala Lumpur.

Brevan Howard has hired Ajay Kumar as a macro/equity derivatives trader. Previously, he was with Goldman Sachs as Head of APAC Index Trading and Head of India Trading and will be based in Hong Kong.

Point 72 has hired Dylan Chu as an Investment Analyst. Dylan was previously with CLSA leading China Consumer Discretionary Equity research and will be based in Hong Kong.

Aquila Capital, a German alternative investment group, has hired Christian Krebs as Head of Investment and Development. Previously, Christian was a Director with Energy Estate based in Sydney and he will relocate to Singapore in his new role. The firm has also hired Hendrik Bohne as Head of Business Development & Asset Management. Previously, Hendrik was with Blue Leaf Energy Asia and he will also be based in Singapore.

Blockchain Valley Ventures (BVV), a Switzerland-headquartered venture capital firm, has named Thomas Amstutz as Asia-Pacific Chairman. Thomas was previously with Credit Suisse and will be based in Singapore.

Schroders has appointed Nicole Kidd as Head of Private Debt for Australia. Nicole joins from RBC where she was a Managing Director and Head of Corporate Banking for Australia and Head of Institutional Client Management for Asia-Pacific. Nicole will be based in Sydney.

Muzinich & Co has hired Jieying Huang as a director for its Asia-Pacific Private Debt team. Jieying joins from BFAM Partners and he will relocate from Hong Kong to Singapore.

Cerberus Capital Management has named James Lee as Head of Korea. James was previously with Park Hill as a Principal and will be based in Hong Kong.

Ares SSG has named John Knox as Australia and New Zealand Chairman. John was previously Australia CEO at Credit Suisse, where he had spent 25 years.

ASIA ASSET MANAGEMENT – Q2 2020

HONG KONG

Nick Aylwin-Foster Director E: [email protected] T: +852 3008 0508

George Windsor Senior Associate E: [email protected] T: +852 3008 0580

Emma Quan Associate E: [email protected] T: +852 3008 0621

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