Asian Wealth Management Forum 2019

We were delighted to host our 9th Asian Wealth Management event in Hong Kong. In excess of 350 CEOs, COOs, and other senior practitioners attended – from a mix of local and international Private Banks, Retail Banks, Insurance Companies, Independent Firms & Family Offices, Asset Management Companies, and IFAs.

Below for your interest and reference are links to various content we captured from the day. Please click on the orange headlines – and do send any comments or feedback to [email protected].

Content Highlights 

Video Highlights
Video Highlights Summary PDF
Exclusive Insights
Testimonials
I Love Wealth Management
Photos
Event summary
Panel discussions
Presentations & Workshops
Videos
Post event Supplement

Post-event Report

You might also like to view the full Post-Event Report – which is a consolidated summary, including photos of speakers & delegates, the attendee profiles & some delegate feedback, polling results, and more. 

Event Summary 

Asian Wealth Management Forum: Hong Kong 2019 Summary
We were delighted to host our 9th annual Asian Wealth Management Forum on February 26 in Hong Kong for the Private Wealth Management Community. It was an immense success, yet again, as you will see below from the brief snapshots of the 20 discussions, presentations, talks and workshops.

Video Highlights

We asked leading industry experts - what are the opportunities and challenges for the year ahead?  View the combined video highlights, or click on the links to view the individual videos.

Full Video Highlights
Video Highlights Summary PDF
I Love Wealth Management
Testimonials

Agnes Shea, Leonteq Securities
Alison Brown, HSBC Global Asset Management
Aman Dhingra, UBP
Anna Wong, Hong Kong University
Arjan de Boer, Indosuez Wealth Management
Damien Piper, Finantix
David MacDonald, Hubbis
Silvio Struebi, Simon-Kucher & Partners
Evrard Bordier, Bordier & Cie
Federico Vasoli, FinanceMalta
Jean-Louis Nakamura, Lombard Odier
Kees Stoute, EFG Private Bank
Malik S. Sarwar, K2 Leaders
Markus Grossmann, Trident Trust
Michael Levin, Credit Suisse Asset Management
Michel van Leeuwen, Hawksford
Nick Pollard, CFA Institute
Patrick Donaldson, Refinitiv
Simon Godfrey, EFG Private Bank
Tariq Dennison, GFM Asset Management
Vincent Magnenat, Lombard Odier
Yiannos Trisokkas, Casamont Cyprus

Exclusive Insights ​​​ ​​​

We asked leading industry experts for their exclusive and incisive insights. Click on the links to view the individual videos:

Exclusive Insights

Agnes Shea, Leonteq Securities
How do you choose the right investment product for the current market environment?

Alison Brown, HSBC Global Asset Management
What digital expectations do clients have?

Aman Dhingra, UBP
What is your client’s expectation on yield today?

Anna Wong, Hong Kong University
What’s Hong Kong doing to improve the value proposition in wealth management?

Arjan de Boer, Indosuez Wealth Management
How will you generate income in 2019?
Is there an increasing interest in ESG?

Damien Piper, Finantix
To what extent has the value proposition got to change in the next ten years? And what competitive threats should we be concerned about?

David MacDonald, Hubbis
Will the average adviser in wealth management in Asia be replaced by a robot anytime soon?

Silvio Struebi, Simon-Kucher & Partners
Do wealth managers have to rethink their revenue mix?
Is the next generation willing to Bank with daddy’s banker?

Entela Benz-Saliasi, HKUST
Is ESG data good enough to use for investment decisions?
What drives the demand for ESG Integration Investment?

Evrard Bordier, Bordier & Cie
When Building a private bank: what are the 3 strategic questions?

Federico Vasoli, FinanceMalta
What are Malta’s solutions in wealth management?
What is driving Malta’s growth in an otherwise slower continent?

Jean-Louis Nakamura, Lombard Odier
What’s the future of Discretionary and Advisory Portfolio Management?

Kees Stoute, EFG Private Bank
In comparison to ten years ago; What has changed in private wealth management in Hong Kong? What has not changed?

Malik S. Sarwar, K2 Leaders
What content have you seen recently that's potentially interesting to this industry?

Markus Grossmann, Trident Trust
What are the wealth structuring challenges facing wealthy families in Asia today?

Michael Levin, Credit Suisse Asset Management
What is interesting in the fixed income and credit universe today?

Michel van Leeuwen, Hawksford
Is the wealth management industry prepared and ready for the intergenerational transfer of wealth in Asia?

Nick Pollard, CFA Institute
Is there increased trust in wealth management in Hong Kong?

Patrick Donaldson, Refinitiv
Connecting customer data to market data – what does this mean?

Simon Godfrey, EFG Private Bank
How do you think Asian equity market performance will be in 2019?
What are the main investment themes and the products that will be most relevant in 2019?

Tariq Dennison, GFM Asset Management
Transparency, Margins, Costs and Fees – what’s changing?

Thorsten Becker, J O Hambro Capital Management
How do you view the state of the economy in the US today?
How has the recent US government shut down affected the US company’s business planning?
What’s the outlook for US Small and Mid-Cap Equities?

Vincent Magnenat, Lombard Odier
How can you transition clients to the next generation of bankers?

Panel Discussions 

We held 4 interactive panel discussions throughout the day – which involved senior industry practitioners who we invited to participate and share their thoughts. We have also incorporated into the summaries below the briefing notes which speakers sent to us in advance of the event. Plus, we have included the results of audience polling as well as questions we received from delegates. Click on each headline to view the PDFs.

Private Wealth Management – A Time of Dramatic Change
The first panel of the Hubbis Asian Wealth Management Forum in Hong Kong produced insightful deliberation on the current and future challenges and future roles for the private banks and other leading wealth management providers. Over the past decade, it appears that some progress has been made, but far more must be achieved, particularly in the key areas of transitioning to a more recurring and less ad hoc revenue stream, focusing more intently on putting the client first, and creating and adroitly pricing the value proposition.

Panel Members
Malik Sarwar (chair), CEO, K2 Leaders
Vincent Magnenat, Chief Executive Officer of Asia Pacific, Lombard Odier
Dr Silvio Struebi, Partner, Simon-Kucher & Partners
Anna Wong, Professor of Practice in Finance, Hong Kong University
Nick Pollard, Managing Director, Asia Pacific, CFA Institute
Kees Stoute, Chief Executive Officer, North Asia, EFG Bank

Delivering Investment Products and Advice to Clients – Time to Re-Calibrate?
What needs do wealth management firms meet for the clients when developing products? How do the clients fit into different categories, for example discretionary, advisory and transaction-driven? How much overlap should there be between these disciplines? How does digital fit in, for example, will robo-advisory result in evolution, or revolution? Are compensation structures suited to ensuring the product and idea flows are client-centric, not sales-centric? A panel of experts deliberated these and other matters in the second discussion of the Asian Wealth Management Forum.

Panel members
Alison Brown, Director & Head of Sales, Wholesale Business, Hong Kong and China, HSBC Global Asset Management
Jean-Louis Nakamura, Chief Investment Officer, Asia Pacific - Chief Executive Officer, Hong Kong, Lombard Odier
Aman Dhingra, Managing Director, Head of Advisory - Singapore, UBP
Sebastien Chaker, Executive Director, Head of Sales & Relationship Management, UBS Fondcenter - Asia Pacific, UBS Global Asset Management
Patrick Donaldson, Head of Market Development, Wealth Management, Asia Pacific & Japan, Refinitiv
Tariq Dennison, Free-only Investment Advisor, GFM Asset Management

Wealth Management Leaders Survey Opportunities in the Global Markets
An eminent group of product gatekeepers gathered at the third panel discussion of the day at the Hubbis Asian Wealth Management Forum. Their mission was to consider how, after a year of considerable angst and volatility, wealth managers should position their clients to make money, but with resilient portfolios. They cast their discerning eyes over the mainstream global and Asian financial markets, they considered passive and active strategies, as well as reviewing opportunities in alternative assets ranging from private equity to gold and property. And they debated the rise of ESG and SRI principles, which are rapidly permeating more and more investment decisions.

Panel members
Malik Sarwar (chair), CEO, K2 Leaders
Thor Monsen, Head of Hedge Funds, APAC, Citi Private Bank
Michael Levin, Head of Asset Management, Asia Pacific, Credit Suisse Asset Management
Arjan de Boer, Deputy Chief Executive, Head of MIS, Asia Market, Investments & Structuring, Indosuez Wealth Management
Angel Wu, Managing Director, Head of Product Management Group, Bank of Singapore
Simon Godfrey, Head of Products, EFG Bank
Matthew Chan, Senior Consultant, Mercer

Investment Ideas and Solutions – Leaders Discuss Markets and Strategies
The discussion began with a focus on risk management, with an expert remarking that he has been spreading the word on risk management developments that have been taking place in recent decades and how the Asian market is adopting the latest techniques. He noted that the past two years in Asia had provided a textbook case for risk management, with 2017 beginning as if it would be risky, but risk turned out at historical lows, while 2018 began with an early flourish and then went straight down for the rest of the year.

Panel members
Sally Ryder, Founder & CEO, Ryder Diamonds
Thorsten Becker, Senior Fund Manager, J O Hambro Capital Management
Harold Kim, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Neo Risk Investment Advisors
Tobias Bland, Chief Executive Officer, Enhanced Investment Products
Steven Cohen, Chief Investment Officer, CBM Investment Management
Joshua Rotbart, Managing Partner, J. Rotbart & Co.

Presentations 

Below are summaries of the Presentations and Wealth TALKS delivered at the event. These were 10-minute slots hosted either by senior industry practitioners who we invited to speak (Wealth TALKS), or by some of our event partners (Presentations). Also listed with each summary are links to the presentation slides (where these are made available by speakers). Click on each headline to view the web versions of these – from which you can also access the 1-page PDFs.

Extoling the Virtues of Being Open Minded, Client-Centric, and Humble
Malik S. Sarwar, CEO of wealth management firm K2 Leaders, USA and also Chairman of Hubbis, opened the Forum by welcoming the delegates to the Hubbis Asian Wealth Management event, and extoling the virtues of listening to what clients actually want, or need, and then humbly proposing ideas and products that are carefully tailored to these requirements. He implored delegates to be open minded and to help advance the wealth management industry’s skills and reputations.

Globalization 4.0 - World is on the move
Jennifer Lai, Managing Partner and Head of North Asia of the migration consultancy Henley & Partners discusses global migration trends, the ongoing globalisation of high-net-worth clients, and what the company sees as the pick of the overseas residence and citizenship programmes that are currently on offer.
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Cyprus Revitalized: How Asia’s HNWIs can Capitalize on the Island’s Reforms
, Managing Partner of Casamont Cyprus, gave a presentation at the Hubbis Asian Wealth Management Forum to highlights the attractions of the Cyprus Investment Programme for Asia’s HNWIs. He focused on the benefits of citizenship and tax residence in Cyprus, which is part of the European Union when structuring wealth, as well as highlighting some of the attractive Cyprus investment and real estate opportunities.
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Revenues at Risk – Why Wealth Managers Must Rethink the Revenue Mix
Dr Silvio Struebi, Partner at Simon-Kucher & Partners, gave a fascinating presentation at the Asian Wealth Management Forum in Hong Kong, advising the audience that wealth management businesses in Asia should take an in-depth and impassionate look at their revenues to decide where their future lies. The ‘big picture’ tasks are to tailor pricing to client segments and their actual activity, while also striving to enhance recurring revenue streams.
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Hawksford in Asia: Expanding Relationships and Broadening its Offerings
Marcus Hinkley, formerly a 20-year career lawyer, was appointed head of private client services for Asia at the Jersey-headquartered international private client, corporate and fund services group Hawksford in the second half of 2018. He was attracted to the firm, as he believes that the growing complexities facing the region’s wealthy present Hawksford with an outstanding opportunity to more comprehensively service the region’s high-net-worth (HNW) clients.
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Attractions of Hong Kong Private Trust Companies for Family Wealth Preservation
Christiaan de Bruyn, Director of Trust Services at Trident Trust in Hong Kong,  believes Hong Kong incorporated Private Trust Companies (PTCs) should be carefully considered as a great tool to hold and administer the assets of wealthy families. He knows that in the world of regulation and compliance we now all live in, PTCs are ideal, professionally structured, transparently managed vehicles for holding wealth, for avoiding family conflicts, and for resolving their succession needs. For optimised family governance, he told the audience at the Hubbis Asian Wealth Management Forum, the PTC is, therefore, an excellent option.
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Why Malta’s Fast Growth, Diversifying and Welcoming Economy Resonates in Asia
Who would like to visit Malta? Who would want to be resident there, or have Maltese citizenship? Most people would be the answer to the first question, for those who are aware of its charms and beauty as a holiday. And many high-net-worth families and entrepreneurs is the answer to the second question. Malta is a small economy in the Mediterranean, but it has been growing at rates comparable to those of China and Vietnam over the past years, is in the European Union and in the British Commonwealth, and has an increasingly diverse economic base, as well as a wonderful lifestyle. Federico Vasoli, lawyer, director of dMTV Europe, with offices in Malta, Vietnam, Dubai and Singapore, and Member of FinanceMalta, gave a presentation to the Hubbis Asian Wealth Management Forum in Hong Kong to highlight its many appeals for Asia’s wealthy individuals and families, as well as the wealth management community at large.
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Swimming with Sharks: Capital Protected Structured Solutions for Uncertain Times
Agnes Shea, Co-Head of Private Banking Sales Asia for Leonteq Securities is adept at working with the wealth management community in the region to tailor structured investment products for the client portfolios. She gave a presentation at the Hubbis Asian Wealth Management Forum to explain why she believes that Leonteq can offer some smart capital protected structured products for Asia’s HNW community, especially during volatile market conditions.
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Private Banking - A New Point of View
Evrard Bordier, Singapore CEO and Managing Partner of Swiss private bank Bordier & Cie, has a deep understanding of the foundation that forms a genuine private bank and a keen sense of the strategic positioning the institution will need to overcome present challenges. He shared Bordier & Cie’s strategy for developing a strategic co-operation model to expand in APAC.
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What Are the Emerging Trends in Digital Wealth Management?
Damien Piper, Regional Director for Asia at fintech Finantix, which was recently bought by New York-based global private equity group Motive Partners, says his firm has a highly targeted and sophisticated approach to the vital incorporation of technology solutions for financial service providers. Piper conveyed his considerable insights to the audience at the Hubbis Asian Wealth Management Forum in a Q&A session with Hubbis founder and CEO Michael Stanhope.

To Win, Emphasise Your Human Advantages
David MacDonald, Head of Learning Solutions at Hubbis gave a talk at the Asian Wealth Management Forum to warn delegates of the dangers of not honing their human skills to align with and complement artificial intelligence and machine learning. Those who recognise this need can provide their clients with excellent advice and outcomes. Those who do not heed this advice might risk obsolescence.
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Managing Risk in Asian Equity Markets
Dr. Harold Kim, CEO of Neo Risk Investment Advisors, presented a Workshop at the Hubbis Asian Wealth Management Forum to share his insights on the recent performance of Asian equity markets and ways in which active risk management and diversified alpha exposure can improve investment returns. His detailed presentation not only informed but also engaged an audience eager to learn more about the theory and application of dynamic risk management.

Leading Residence and Citizenship-By-Investment Programmes
Jonathan Tang, Director, and Qishi Fu, Senior Manager, of Henley & Partners, gave an excellent workshop presentation at the recent Asian Wealth Management Forum on the subject of Leading Residence Programmes in Asia, focussing particularly upon Hong Kong and Singapore, as well as Citizenship-by-Investment Programmes in Europe and Granada.
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Transformational Wealth Management: How to Enhance your Impact and Delight Clients
Malik S. Sarwar, CEO of wealth management firm K2 Leaders and Chairman of Hubbis, has forthright and bold views on how professionals in the wealth management industry can enhance their levels of expertise, service quality and client-responsiveness to move their offering up several notches and thereby retain and expand their client relationships. He presented a detailed, insightful and interactive workshop at the Hubbis Asian Wealth Management Forum, outlining his concept of the five habits of effective advisers, advising delegates on how to become a differentiated adviser via continuous self-enhancement, expressing his views on engaging clients in challenging markets and offering ideas for simple solutions to discuss with clients today.

Why disclosing climate risk is already an improvement
Entela Benz-Saliasi, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Climate risk is now recognised as a significant risk to businesses and society as a whole, pressuring companies to report on how climate change affects their operations and financial performance. These more transparent disclosures benefit an investment community that is increasingly seeking transit to a low-carbon economy and expecting companies to report on climate-related risks with as much as rigorous methodologies and clarity as any other financial risk.
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