ROBECO NAMES NEW ASIA EX-JAPAN HEAD OF WHOLESALE
Robeco has promoted Dawn Foo as its new regional head of wholesale for Asia (ex-Japan), effective immediately. She replaced Tom Keenan, who left the firm last month to return to his native country Australia, according to a statement from the firm.
Based in Singapore, Foo is tasked to expand Robeco’s wholesale business in Asia and build the firm’s leadership and recognition in sustainable investing among distributors, the firm said.
Foo joined Robeco in 2016. Most recently, she was the firm’s director of Singapore and Southeast Asia wholesale distribution. In her new role, she will report to Javier Garcia De Vinuesa, head of of EMEA wholesale and global financial institutions.
Robeco has had a presence in Asia-Pacific since 2005, with offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney, Melbourne and Tokyo.
The firm’s Hong Kong office houses its Asia-Pacific equities investment team, while the Singapore office is an extension of tits Rotterdam-based fixed income team. In Shanghai, the office provies on-the-ground China A-share research to all Robeco investment teams globally.
Globally, the firm had €155bn ($187.87bn) in assets under management (AUM), of which €144bn is committed to ESG integration, according to the statement.
JANUS HENDERSON HIRES CHINA PM
Janus Henderson Investors has hired Lin Shi as a portfolio manager for China strategies, according to a press statement.
Lin joined the firm in end-October and is responsible for managing client portfolios and funds. She is based in Singapore and is part of the firm’s Asia equities team.
Lin’s appointment follows after Charlie Awdry, who managed the Janus Henderson China Opportunities Fund since 2006, stepped down earlier this year to take a career break, according to a document from Morningstar Direct. The fund is continued to be managed by co-manager May Ling Wee, who has worked on this strategy alongside Awdry since 2015, it noted.
Lin has at least nine years of experience in managing China strategies and around 15 years in investment management and research. Before Janus Henderson, she was a fund manager at Hang Seng Qianhai Fund Management, Hamon Asset Management and Legg Mason, according to the statement.
ABERDEEN STANDARD CREATES JAPAN DEPUTY HEAD ROLE
Aberdeen Standards Investments (ASI) has named Sadayuki Takahashi as its Tokyo-based deputy head of Japan, effective 1 December, according to a statement from the firm.
In this newly created role, he will work closely with Ken Yajima, CEO and representative director of ASI Japan, on the development and execution of the firm’s Japan business strategy. Yajima joined the firm last year from Schroders, where he was head of distribution for Japan, and replaced Neil Slater, who took on the role of deputy head of private markets and global head of real estate.
Like Yajima, Sadayuki was also at Schroders, where he was COO of distribution and head of product development for Japan since 2017, according to the statement, noting that he has been with the firm for 14 years.
“With the appointment of Sadayuki, ASI aims to further strengthen its management structure in Japan, as well as its client support functions, including client services operations and business administration,” the firm said.
Globally, ASI manages around $562.9bn in assets, according to the statement.
HSBC GLOBAL AM EXPANDS INFRA DEBT TEAM
HSBC Global Asset Management has made two appointments to its infrastructure investment team.
Alexandre Broggi has been named as senior portfolio manager for Asia infrastructure debt investments, while Dimitrios Papatheodorou has been appointed as senior portfolio manager for infrastructure debt investments, according to a statement from the firm.
Broggi will be responsible for expanding the firm’s infrastructure debt platform in Asia. Based in Hong Kong and subject to regulatory approval, he is expected to start his new role in January next year.
Currently, Broggi is a director for infrastructure finance at HSBC Global Banking and Markets, according to the statement. He has 20 years of experience in infrastructure finance, having worked in the sector in Paris, Singapore and Hong Kong. He first joined HSBC in 2006.
“We expect strong growth in the Asia-Pacific market in the coming years given the substantial need for infrastructure investment in the region,” Glenn Fox, global head of infrastructure debt investments, said in the statement.
Meanwhile, Papatheodorou, who is based in London, is tasked to lead the origination and execution of transactions for the firm’s high yield infrastructure debt strategy.
Before joining HSBC Global AM, he spent five years at specialist high yield infrastructure debt firm Sequoia Investment Management.
Both Broggi and Papatheodorou report to Fox, according to the statement.
The firm’s infrastructure debt business was established in 2018 and now has an AUM of $2.2bn, with $1.33bn deployed across 41 transactions the statement said.
GAM EXPANDS EQUITY SPECIALISTS TEAM
Gam Investments has appointed Matt Williams in the newly created role of head of equity investment specialists, effective 1 December, according to a statement from the firm.
Based in London, Williams will be responsible for leading the firm’s team of equity investment specialists. He will work closely with the firm’s investment teams across equities to help further articulate their investment strategies and to further enhance client understanding of Gam’s equity offering.
He will report to Greg Clerkson, head of discretionary investment.
Williams was at Blackrock, where he was a director and European equities product strategist, according to the statement. Before that, he held roles in equity research, with a focus on capital goods, at MF Global, HSBC and Capital Group.
Gam has made several appointments this year, including Paras Bakrania as head of Gam systematic product specialists and David Petrachi as head of product specialists for Gam investment solutions, according to the statement.
In Hong Kong, the firm recently hired Lynn Xing as a member of the firm’s emerging market equities team, which is run by Tim Love out of London.
As of the end of September, Gam managed around $131.1bn in assets globally, according to the statement.
