Madrid-headquartered Allfunds received licences for dealing in securities (Type 1) and advising on securities (Type 4 licences) from Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) last month, according to the records of the regulator.
A type 1 licence enables firms to buy or sell mutual funds for clients, while a type 4 licence allows firms to give investment advice to clients relating to the sale or purchase of securities.
While Allfunds is known for its fund execution, custody and administration services and is the largest B2B funds platform in Europe, it also has an investment advisory and portfolio solutions unit that provides services such as due diligence and fund selection.
FSA sought more information from Allfunds, but the firm was not able to provide more information about the new licences in time for publication.
In Hong Kong, the appointed responsible officers of the firm are David Perez, Stephanie Chan and Louis Poon, according to SFC records.
In October, David Perez was appointed as the firm’s Singapore-based regional manager for Asia, a role he held in the past, according to his Linkedin profile.
He replaces Alexis Fosler, who has left the firm.
Perez was the regional head from 2014 – 2018. He then relocated back to Madrid to become global head of strategic accounts as Fosler took over,
Separately, 20 other firms received relevant licences from the SFC to conduct regulated activities in Hong Kong, the regulator’s records show. Of those 20 firms, 17 have a licence for asset management (Type 9).
Asia expansion
The move to obtain licences in Hong Kong follows after Allfunds opened its first Asia office in Singapore in 2016 to pursue opportunities across the region.
In 2018, the firm expressed its intention to expand the Singapore office’s investment advisory capabilities to target subsidiaries of onshore Chinese firms that have set up in Hong Kong and Singapore. It hired Vinita Badlani as head of funds group for Asia, who was previously the head of fund selection at Aviva’s Navigator, an IFA-focused platform in Singapore.
Also in 2018, Allfunds appointed Yee Tuck Meng as head of investment solutions for Asia. Yee was chief operating officer and chief investment officer at Singapore-based Malaysian family office JRT Powers, where he led investment strategy and due diligence at the firm.
Separately, DBS last year also chose Allfunds to become the provider of access to third-party mutual funds for its wealth and retail banking business.
