BNP Paribas Reorganises Asia Wealth Management Group, To Focus On Six Markets

Tom Burroughes

14 January 2011

BNP Paribas, the eurozone’s largest wealth management firm by assets, said today it has created a new organisational structure for its wealth management business in Asia and said it will focus on six key markets, according to Reuters.

These markets include Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, India, Singapore and others, BNP is reported to have said in a statement, adding that it would also set up a dedicated unit to serve ultra-high-net-worth individuals. The moves follow a reorganisation of its global wealth management division in June last year.

BNP, which had wealth management assets of €252 billion as at 30 September, has appointed separate heads for each market segment, the report said.

"The major difference between the new and previous structure is the creation of the UHNWI unit and having a more market-oriented structure," a spokesperson was quoted as saying.

Mignonne Cheng, who has spent nearly two decades with the company, will retain her responsibilities as chairman and chief executive of the French bank's Asia-Pacific wealth management division. She will also be responsible as head of UHNWI & Independent Wealth Managers for Asia Pacific.

Serge Janowski will head the Hong Kong wealth unit of BNP Paribas and Sergi Forti will head the Singapore unit.

Furthermore, Ernest Leung is appointed head of strategy and business development for wealth management Asia Pacific. Stephanie Lair will continue her current role as head of products and services for wealth

management Asia Pacific with an expanded scope for wealth planning services Asia and trust and fiduciary services in Asia. Sharon Chou and Ricardo Sanchez-Moreno continue as head of credit and risk management for wealth management Asia Pacific and chief operating officer for wealth management Asia Pacific respectively. All market heads and function heads will report regionally to Cheng.

Asia, home to more than 3 million millionaires, has become a battleground for private banks as global and Asian players compete for market share in a region that is fast outpacing the United States and Europe in economic growth.

The combined wealth of Asia-Pacific high-net-worth individuals is estimated to grow at an annual rate of 8.8 per cent until 2018, according to a Merrill Lynch-Capgemini wealth report.