Ex-Barclays Wealth Deputy Chairman Lands Senior Role in Singapore Bank

Stephen Harris

22 January 2007

Former Barclays Wealth Deputy Chairman Elie Khouri, has joined DBS Bank, the largest bank in Singapore as vice-chairman of DBS Asia Capital, and has not set up an independent operation as previously reported. Although DBS Asia Capital is the investment banking arm of DBS Bank, Mr Khouri told WealthBriefing that his role is significantly wider and involves, amongst other things, the bank’s wealth management activities. Mr Khouri oversaw the Middle and Far East for Barclays International Private Bank, and was chairman of the operation in Egypt. At the end of last year two international groups, including UBS, and Standard Chartered, informally agreed not to hire private bankers in Singapore from DBS and OCBC, according to unconfirmed press reports. Under the truce, apparently sponsored by the Association of Banks in Singapore – and, according to some sources, pressure from the Monetary Authority of Singapore – private banking players had several meetings last year and agreed a set of informal guidelines on hiring. The agreement covered areas such as the buying out of notice periods for new hires, and the protection of client information. At the moment the truce is holding but, according to one highly placed private banking source in Singapore, there could be another “big surge in March” when bonuses are paid. Last November UBS poached Eddie Gan from DBS to head up its private banking operation in Singapore. Mr Gan was previously head of the Singapore team at DBS.