St James’s Place
St James’s Place Asia has announced the appointment of Justin Davies and Sheila Dickinson. Both will focus on providing financial planning and wealth management in Hong Kong.
The pair join from The Fry Group in Hong Kong, where Dickinson worked as a senior wealth manager and Davies as a senior financial planner.
Schroders
Schroders has appointed Amy Cho as chief executive of its Hong Kong business. Cho succeeds Chris Durack, who takes on the top job for Schroders in Australia after three years at the helm in Hong Kong.
Cho will also take on the newly created role of regional head of intermediary clients, assuming both roles on 3 December.
BlackRock
BlackRock has promoted Joe Parkin to head of iShares and digital wealth UK, Netherlands and the Nordics.
Parkin previously headed up wealth and retail UK, Ireland and Channel Islands at iShares. In his new role, he will be responsible for BlackRock’s ETF, index and index solutions, as well as developing the firm’s digital wealth business across clients in northern Europe.
Brooks Macdonald
The investment management firm has announced a number of changes. Edward Park has been appointed as deputy chief investment officer, leaving his previous position as investment committee director. Park joined the firm as a trainee investment manager in 2009.
Meanwhile, Nick Holmes, the firm’s UK investment management director, is to leave the company after 22 years by the end of the year. Going forward, the division will be co-led by Robin Eggar, head of London, and John Wallace, head of regions.
Morningstar
The global investment and research firm has appointed Matt Wacher as chief investment officer for Asia-Pacific, while Andrew Lill – Wacher’s predecessor – takes on the same role for the Americas.
Lill will continue to oversee the Asia-Pacific region during the transition. Wacher joins Morningstar from Cambooya, a large family office fund in Australia. Both will begin their new roles in late January 2019.
Jersey Financial Services Commission
The Jersey Financial Services Commission has added two commissioners to its board. Mark Hoban and Monique O’Keefe will begin their five-year terms on 1 December after being sworn in by the Royal Court earlier this month.
Hoban is a former MP who also served as financial secretary for the UK Treasury, while O’Keefe is the co-founder of an investment consultancy business.
China Life Insurance
Mingsheng Yang has retired as chairman and executive director of China Life Insurance.
He will be succeeded by Bin Wang, who was executive director and chairman of of the board of directors China Taiping Insurance Group from March 2012 to August 2018 prior to joining China Life.
EFG International
EFG International has appointed Ranjit Singh as chief risk officer and as a member of its executive committee, starting 1 January 2019. Singh will be overseeing and enhancing the group’s global risk function.
He has held a similar role at Standard Life Aberdeen prior for the last five years.
East Capital
Former deputy head of Eastern Europe at East Capital, Tim Umberger, has been promoted to partner. He started his career at the company as an analyst for the Balkans more than a decade ago, assuming his latest role in 2015.
Freedom Insurance
The chief executive of Freedom Insurance, Craig Orton, has resigned “for personal reasons” just a few months after giving evidence to the banking royal commission about the company’s practice of cold-calling people to sell life insurance. He will be replaced by Sean Williamson, currently a consultant and former general manager of TAL.
Pauline Vamos has also been appointed as non-executive director and the company is set to appoint her as chairman after its annual general meeting this week.
