HONG KONG (Reuters) – Standard Chartered has hired more than a dozen new bankers for its private banking teams in Singapore, Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates in a bid to grow its wealth management business, the bank said in a statement on Thursday.
The appointments include Nicholas Cheng, who joins the bank as executive director and head of private markets group. Cheng reports to Fu Tien Ong, regional head of private banking for Southeast Asia and Singapore, the statement said.
Cheng joins the private banking team in Singapore along with seven other new hires. The bank added that the new hires will focus on building relationships and advising high-net-worth individual clients in the region.
The statement said that the bank also appointed four relationship managers in Hong Kong and relationship managers in the United Arab Emirates.
“In line with the ambition to grow a thriving business, the bank has built its private bank over the past few years,” the statement said, adding that the recruitment of new talent would strengthen frontline teams to support customer needs.
Standard Chartered reported a 5.5% rise in first-quarter pre-tax profit in May, as higher income from its commercial and wealth businesses offset additional credit losses.