Asian Wealth Solutions Forum 2019

Rohit Bhuta is a senior executive with over 26 years’ experience, most of which (22 years) with the Macquarie Group. He has worked across eight key markets globally and has had extensive experience in the private banking, wealth management and asset management space. He has lived and worked in New Zealand, Australia, UK, South Africa, Malaysia, Hong Kong, India and Singapore. He has held senior leadership and strategic roles over the years, spanning multiple layers and levels of accountability. He is currently the CEO at Crossinvest (Asia) Pte Ltd, a family owned multi-generational independent asset management company providing (discretionary) investment management, investment advisory and family office solutions and services to investors globally. His role prior to this was working as a senior adviser to Macquarie Group’s Commodities and Financial Markets group, with a mandate to design and execute go-to-market strategies with the family offices, private banks and asset managers across Asia. His role prior to that and before a year-long sabbatical (2014), was the CEO of Religare Macquarie Private Wealth, a private wealth company domiciled in India but targeting high / ultra-high net worth investors globally. While Australia is home, he has operated out of South Africa since 2000 and Asia since 2005. Rohit has developed a deep understanding of the culture and the inherent nuances driving each economy within Africa and Asia, in particular within the wealth management / private banking industry.

Ian has extensive experience in both corporate and personal financial planning in the UK, Singapore and South East Asia with specific focus on Pensions, Investments, Tax and Trusts. Prior to joining AAM, Ian held the position of Regional Sales Manager (South East Asia) at Friends Provident International. An experienced Financial Planner and manager, Ian has held senior positions with major insurers, fund managers and national IFA practices in the UK. One of around 4,000 Chartered Financial Planners worldwide, Ian holds Singapore Financial Planning qualifications and the Advanced Diploma in Financial Planning offered by The Chartered Insurance Institute.

David MacDonald is the Head of Business Development for AAM Advisory. MacDonald began his career in banking, being affiliated with the Royal Bank of Scotland from 1995 to 2005, before moving on to lead teams of wealth managers within large financial services organisations in the UK. In 2001, He founded Macsimise, a consulting & training company which serviced clients across Asia-Pacific, The Middle East, and India. In 2011, MacDonald joined Hubbis as the Head of Learning Solutions, where he developed relationships with stakeholders and decision-makers, to then create and deliver skills & competency development interventions with corporate clients across Asia Pacific, India, and The Middle East.

Fiona Chan is a partner in the corporate department and private client & trust department of Appleby’s Hong Kong office, advising on a full spectrum of banking and finance, non-contentious insurance, technology and innovation, private client and trust matters relating to the laws of Bermuda, British Virgin Islands and Cayman Islands. She is a member of Appleby’s economic substance and technology and innovation group. Fiona has almost 20 years of offshore and onshore experience in the Asian market. Her broad offshore law practice spans banking and finance transactions including acquisition, leveraged and project financing, shipping and aircraft financing, structured products, bond issuance and restructuring of corporates and financial institutions. In the private client practice space, Fiona specialises in advising on Bermuda insurances and trust structures of various offshore jurisdictions. She also assists clients with setting up employee incentive schemes of different nature and forms, with or without trust structures. Fiona has been widely recognised by her clients as well as legal directories. She was selected as one of the region’s 10 most notable offshore lawyers of the Asian Legal Business’ Offshore Client Choice List in 2017, 2018 and 2019 respectively. She was also selected as one of the 2017 Influential Women in Re/Insurance by Intelligent Insurer and recognised in Legal 500 Asia-Pacific (Offshore). She regularly speaks at conferences and seminars and is often asked to contribute to policy discussions, interviews and articles for leading industry organisations and journals in the offshore space. Fiona is fluent in English, Mandarin and Cantonese.

Sebastien Hayoz joined Asiaciti Trust in October 2016. He has a law degree from the University of Fribourg in Switzerland and worked in a Geneva Law Firm before joining the trust and fiduciary industry. In his previous positions, Sebastien was Head of Private Clients Services in Geneva for international trust companies. Sebastien is a member of STEP.

Thomas von Rueti is the Chief Commercial Officer of Singapore Life since January 2016. Prior to joining Singapore Life, Thomas was member of the Executive team of Zurich Life in Singapore from 2013 until the end of 2015. Thomas moved to Singapore in 2008 as the CEO of Swiss Life Singapore, a HNW focused insurer which he lead from a greenfield operation to a one billion premium player in just a few year. Before moving to Singapore he had senior roles with UBS, Credit Suisse and Winterthur in Switzerland and Hong Kong. He has extensive experience in life insurance and wealth management industry covering wealth planning, customer advise, distribution and proposition development. Besides his role at Singapore Life does he teach at the SMU academy.

Michael Olesnicky is a senior consultant based in Baker McKenzie's Hong Kong office. He served as the chair of the firm's Asian Tax & Wealth Management practice from 2000 to 2014, and was a member of its Global Tax Steering Committee during that period. Michael's practice focuses on Hong Kong and Asian regional tax advisory work, tax disputes and litigation, as well as wealth management and estate planning.  He is the current chair of STEP's branch in Hong Kong and of its China sub-sub-committee. He is also the chair of the Joint Liaison Committee on Taxation in Hong Kong. He was previously a lecturer in law at Hong Kong University where he remains as an honorary lecturer. Michael has more than 25 years’ experience advising on corporate tax, wealth management, trust planning and estate succession matters.

John Shoemaker is Senior Counsel with Butler Snow in their Singapore office. John has more than 30 years’ experience in tax, legal & regulatory compliance, and is a common law lawyer with educational emphasis on taxation, trusts & estate planning. He also has extensive experience in ensuring multi-jurisdictional compliance for fiduciary product offerings (working with multijurisdictional outside counsel & adapting products for sale in relevant jurisdictions), including product management skills to direct complex products from concept to fully operational status.

Zac Lucas is the Founder of Centenal Legal Technology Group. Zac is a practicing lawyer with over 20 years legal experience, admitted to practice in England & Wales, and is a former Partner of various international law firms including, Harneys, Ogier, Lawrence Graham and Gowling WLG advising on all areas of international private client law, including cross border wills, trust and estates and business succession planning. Zac has particular expertise advising on international regulatory law and has lectured and written extensively on the OECD Common Reporting Standard (CRS). As a result, Zac has been retained by a number of leading private banks, trust companies, wealthy individuals and families and a governmental authority to advise on the practical implementation of the CRS. Zac has now taken the step, in founding Centenal Legal Technology Group, to leverage the power of information technology to create innovative enterprise application software solutions for use by Financial Institutions, Business Professionals and UHNW families and individuals.

Leping joined Cone Marshall in Hong Kong to work closely with our Asian clients where his background and language skills enable him to understand their needs and address their concerns. Leping advises clients on setting up efficient and tailored structures to protect their global assets and to facilitate their wealth succession. The primary focus of his practice is to help Chinese clients with their global relocation and associated wealth planning, particularly between Asia and the U.S. Leping received his LL.B. from China Foreign Affairs University. Upon graduation, he continued his legal study in the United States, where he pursued his Juris Doctor (J.D.) at SMU Dedman School of Law. After graduating with honors, he further grew his expertise by receiving his LL.M. in Taxation from NYU School of Law. Leping is an attorney admitted to practice in Texas and New York. Born and raised in Beijing, Leping is fluent in both Mandarin and English.

Prior to joining Crossbridge Capital, Guita worked for Credit Suisse in Switzerland and the UAE as a Relationship Manager focused on the Indian Subcontinent and the NRI markets. She joined Credit Suisse after twelve years in the art market where she held senior management and business development positions, notably at the International Art and Antique Loss Register (The Art Loss Register), an art recovery service owned by Christie’s, Sotheby’s and AXA amongst others, and at Gabrius UK Ltd, a firm specialising in publishing products aimed at the art investment market. Guita received her BA (Hons.) degree in Economics from the University of Virginia and her MA degree in International Affairs from Columbia University in New York.

Woon Shiu has over 20 years of expertise in marketing, client development and professional training in family office structuring, trusts, high-net-worth life insurance and estate planning in Asia Pacific (especially China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia). Over the years, Woon Shiu has handled multiple landmark transactions, advising ultra-high net-worth individuals and founding members of banking conglomerates on matters relating to taxes, multi-generational endowment funds, planning of global assets, and much more. Woon Shiu is also an adjunct professor at the Wealth Management Institute (in Nanyang Technological University) and regularly lectures private bankers, lawyers and trust practitioners on wealth structuring and estate succession. He has also spoken as a guest lecturer at universities in China, and his views on family businesses are regularly featured in the Financial Times, Barron’s Asia, Singapore Business Times, China Daily and other renowned publications. Woon Shiu has advised numerous ultra-high net-worth families across Asia Pacific in the areas of strategic structuring of their estate and succession planning. He commonly engages multi-generation families, giving them advice on successfully establishing and implementing their desired family governance and philanthropic strategies. He holds a STEP certification and is a Solicitor in England and Wales, as well as an Advocate and Solicitor in Singapore. Woon Shiu is fluent in English and Mandarin – often lecturing in both languages – and is also conversant in Cantonese, Hokkien and Hainanese.

Ee Lin is an award-winning internationally recognised trust & wealth planner and family business governance advisor to high net worth families and family offices in Asia Pacific & Middle East. A fully qualified advocate and solicitor, she has held C-suite and regional roles in major international banks for almost 3 decades. Besides her expertise in trust structuring and family business succession planning, she is also well versed in strategic philanthropy, insurance solutions, business development, business management, restructuring, audit, corporate governance, regulatory compliance, anti-money laundering and risk management. Currently Director at Deloitte Private Tax and Legal, heading up Family Enterprise Consulting, she helps business owning families create family constitutions, and advises on family governance, trust & succession planning and family office structuring. A trained mediator, she is also adjunct professor at Singapore Management University and Nanyang Technological University where she lectures at executive education and Masters programs and also at the Business Families Institute. She is a frequent speaker at industry events in the region. Prior to joining Deloitte, Ee Lin’s career has included roles such as Co-Founder of RHT Family Office, Regional Head of Wealth Planning at Coutts private bank, CEO and Resident Manager of Clariden Trust Company (Singapore), and Chief of Staff and Asia Pacific Head of International Estate Planning at ABN AMRO Private Banking, and bank regulator at the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Ee Lin’s commercial board experience has included board director roles at RHT Family Office, PPLI Asia (a boutique insurance broker) and Clariden Trust Company. She has continually served on non-profit boards over the past 27 years. Currently, she serves on the Resource Panel for the Singapore Government Parliamentary Committee for Finance and Trade (since 2009) and on the boards of the SMU Shirin Fozdar Program and the Society of Trust & Estate Practitioners, the international professional association for trust & estate planners. She previously served on the board of the World Wide Fund for Nature, where she was Chair of the Remuneration Committee and Nominations Committee, as President of the Financial Women’s Association, and served on the boards of BoardAgender (an initiative of the Singapore Council of Women’s Organisations) and the Stanford Alumni Association. Ee Lin holds three degrees at Magna Cum Laude level: BA in Economics from Stanford University, MBA in International Wealth Management from Carnegie Mellon University, Tepper School of Business, and a Doctor in Jurisprudence from SMU. Admitted to the Singapore Bar, she is ranked in the CityWealth Leaders’ List 2019 and Citywealth International Financial Centre PowerWomen Top 200 global list annually since 2014. Married with one son, Ee Lin has lived and worked in Hong Kong, Geneva, Jersey, Luxembourg, Malaysia and Singapore.

Edmund is a senior partner heading up the firm’s Tax practice with three decades of experience in advising multinational organisations on cross-border tax planning, transfer pricing and tax disputes. He also advises on international trade issues such as customs, WTO and free-trade agreements. Edmund also leads the firm’s Trust, Estates and Wealth Preservation practice and advises high net worth individuals, private banks and trust companies in personal tax, as well as in trust and estate planning matters. Edmund was invited by the government to serve as a Judicial Commissioner at the Supreme Court and served from 2013 to 2016. On stepping down, he was appointed Senior Counsel in 2017, making him the first and only Tax and Trust lawyer to be given this accolade nationwide. Prior to his appointment to the Singapore judiciary in 2013, Edmund was named a Tier 1 lawyer by The Legal 500 Asia Pacific for Tax in 2012. His views on tax and wealth management were widely sought and publicised in the media, such as Bloomberg, BBC, Channel NewsAsia, Reuters, The Financial Times and The Straits Times. He was also a founding partner of a Singapore law firm that was associated with an international law firm, where he headed up the Tax and Wealth Management practices in Singapore. Edmund is a former President and an honorary member of the Singapore Trustees Association (STA).

Rohit Ganguli is the Head of Wealth Planning Asia at EFG Bank, he has two decades of experience working with clients to assist them in achieving their wealth planning objectives especially in relation to succession, legacy and asset protection needs. This often involves the use of trusts, foundations, corporate entities and other holding vehicles. Rohit is responsible for all aspects of the insurance activity in EFG in Asia. This involves supporting all insurance related discussions – including identifying life insurance referral opportunities based on clients’ wealth and liquidity planning needs, extensively interacting with external counter parties (such as insurance brokers and carriers) and also actively engaging with related stake holders within the bank. He manages all discussions around single family offices (SFO) and works closely with clients on the benefits and processes involved in the set up of SFOs. Rohit has a background in accountancy and also holds a Master’s degree in International Tax Law from the University of Leiden in the Netherlands. He is a registered trust and estate practitioner (TEP) and holds a diploma from the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners and is also certified with the Singapore College of Insurance. He has worked across geographies and has been with Big 4 consulting firms and MNCs prior to joining the bank.

Gerard Gardner is Global Head of EFG International’s wealth structuring business, EFG Wealth Solutions. Headquartered in Jersey, Gerard has responsibility for fiduciary platforms and wealth planners in Asia, Europe and the Americas. He has been a director of various EFG group companies for over 20 years and is a member of EFG’s senior management college, the International Management Forum. Gerard also serves as a Director on the boards of a number of private client structures and real estate and private equity funds.  

Desmond is a Tax Partner within Ernst & Young (EY) FSO, focusing on Asset Management and International Tax and leads the FSO Asia Pacific Growth Markets and EY ASEAN WAM Tax and International Tax practice. With a working knowledge of transfer pricing, individual taxes, indirect taxes and transfer taxes, he offers holistic tax solutions to clients with global and regional presence, and provides clients with an end-to-end solution. In addition to helping clients set up of family office structures, Desmond’s experience also includes providing tax advisory services covering cross-border structuring.

Federico Vasoli is a lawyer admitted to the Bar of Milan, to the Malta’s Chamber of Advocates as an EU lawyer and by the Ministry of Justice as a foreign lawyer in Vietnam. He is the managing partner of the international legal and tax advisory firm dMTV, with offices in Singapore, Malta, Vietnam and Dubai. Prof Vasoli considers himself a very ethical person that values interpersonal relations, challenges, innovation and sound legal support that makes a positive difference for businesses. He is an adjunct professor at MIP Politecnico di Milano, Italy.

Steven is the Southeast Asia Head of Private Wealth Solutions for HSBC Private Banking Steven is responsible for supporting HSBC’s clients in their trust and estate planning, family governance, philanthropic and succession needs Steven has over 28 years of experience in advising private clients and their families Steven is able to create and deliver solutions within a strong risk framework for the benefit of c lients and future generations Prior to joining HSBC Private Banking in Singapore, Steven was a Managing Director and International Fiduciary Head for the Citi Private Bank Responsible for Trustee and Client administration delivery across all international trust companies, Steven led cross jurisdictional teams and was a Board member across complex and changing regulatory environments Steven has managed sales teams, implemented regional marketing strategies focusing on Ultra High Net Worth clients and Next Gen He also managed key strategic programs including launching a new trust center and transitioning to a global IT platform Steven also worked with KPMG in Switzerland and Australia, in the areas of Banking and Private Business Services Steven graduated from Melbourne University with a Bachelor of Commerce (Commercial Law and Accountancy) and is also a member of the Australian Institute of Chartered Accountants.

Scott Moore is Managing Director and Head of the Indonesia and Philippines offices at Henley & Partners. Scott has extensive experience dealing with high-net-worth individuals and their families concerning residence and citizenship planning. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of British Columbia and has attended the National University of Singapore.

Dominic Volek is Group Head of Private Clients at Henley & Partners and a member of the Executive Committee. Originally from South Africa, he now spends his time between London, Dubai, and Singapore as a private client specialist in residence and citizenship planning and provides advice to ultra-high-net-worth individuals and their families across the globe. His work targets countries that are deemed most attractive to wealthy individuals in terms of mobility, security, privacy, personal tax, estate planning, and lifestyle. He is also a member of the firm’s Government Advisory practice, providing strategic advice to governments on the design, implementation, and promotion of successful investment migration programs. Dominic is a certified Chartered Accountant CA (SA), holding both a Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting with Honors and Bachelor of Arts in Corporate Communication. Prior to joining Henley & Partners, Dominic had a successful career as part of the Senior Management team in one of the big four accounting and advisory firms in Singapore, South Africa, and the USA. Dominic is frequently sought after as a speaker and thought leader on residence and citizenship planning, and he regularly provides commentary on the Henley Passport Index. He has been interviewed by top-tier media such as BBC, Quartz, and Bloomberg.

Nirbhay Handa is the Group Head of Business Development at Henley & Partners and the Managing Director and Head of the firm’s Global South Asia team. He focuses exclusively on advising high-net-worth individuals and their families on residence and citizenship by investment. Nirbhay has been on the forefront of the investment migration industry across Asia and the South Asia subcontinent, advising some of the most respectable and established private banks, family offices, and law firms. His articles, commentary, and overall thought leadership in the investment migration space is often quoted in some of Asia’s leading wealth management forums and publications. He is passionate about developing people and growing high-performance teams. Nirbhay received his formative education at the University of Nottingham and executive education at the London School of Economics and the University of Oxford.

Naomi Rive is a Group Director and Head of Family Office at independent trust business, Highvern. A lawyer by training, Naomi was called to the English Bar in 1999 and re-qualified as a Jersey Advocate in 2003. During her time as a Partner of law firm, Appleby, Naomi provided wealth-structuring advice to high net worth individuals, international private banks and trust companies. In 2014, Naomi joined Coutts & Co Trustees (Jersey) Limited where she was a Board Director and a part of the senior management team. The business was subject to a management buy-out in late 2016 in which Naomi played a key role and this led to the business being re-branded as Highvern. Naomi works closely with Highvern’s international client base and their independent legal, tax and investment advisers to ensure the establishment and implementation of robust and sustainable wealth planning structures. Naomi has considerable experience of providing trustee services in connection with complex trust structures and sitting on the board of directors of private trust companies. Naomi is a former Chair to STEP in Jersey and sits on the Jersey Finance Trusts Law Working Party. She is also a former adjunct-professor of trusts at the Jersey Institute of Law.

Mark Smallwood TEP is based in the UK from where he advises predominantly Asian UHNW families on the structuring and ongoing administration and management of their estate and succession plan, family office, investment process and governance. He sits on the Business Advisory Council of a successful privately held business spanning multiple jurisdictions. After nearly 35 years in financial services across the global, including the UK, Caribbean, Switzerland, Hong Kong and Singapore and having held senior positions in one of the leading global private banks, Mark has unique insights and brings an independent, unconflicted view which enables UHNW families to objectively evaluate their decision making process.

Reach our to Mark: [email protected]

Cho Peng has more than 25 years of experience in the financial services industry with a main focus on advising High Net Worth families in South East Asia. Cho Peng joined IPG in Jan 2006 as a Senior Consultant advising High Net Worth Individuals to achieve their wealth transfer planning objectives with internationally-sourced life insurance based solutions. In Jul 2011, she assumed the role of Chief Operating Officer, overseeing the daily operation of the business including working closely with the Sales Consultants to increase their referral sources and creating opportunities for new business. Cho Peng became Chief Executive Officer in Jan 2018 to further strengthen IPG’s leadership position in the HNW insurance space. Prior to IPG, she spent 13 years in Banking with her last role as a Senior Relationship Manager at an International Private Bank. Cho Peng is a Certified Financial Planner and holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree from National University of Singapore.

With a career in financial services spanning four decades, Joe has a strong commitment to the future success of the industry in Jersey. Joe commenced his professional life in the banking sector, rising to the position of CEO of Jersey and the Isle of Man for a major bank, which included responsibilities for trusts and investments. In recent years, he expanded his focus as Director of Financial Services within the government of Jersey, where he worked closely with industry and regulator to ensure the island’s position as a leading international finance centre. Before joining Jersey Finance in February 2019, Joe was working to establish high-reputation regulatory frameworks and business models for IFCs in the Middle East and Africa.

Lee Wong is Head of Family Services, Asia at Lombard Odier. Lee is responsible for leading Lombard Odier’s wealth planning and family services proposition, which is a key component of the Bank’s growth strategy in the region. Before joining Lombard Odier, Lee amassed over 22 years of experience in the wealth management industry. She joined from Union Bancaire Privée in Singapore, where she was Head of Wealth Planning for South Asia and was responsible for leading a team advising high net worth clients on their family wealth transition, family governance, as well as philanthropic aspirations. Lee is a member of the MAS-EDB Family Office workgroup as well as the Wealth Management Institute’s expert panel on Family Offices. She is a regular trainer for Singapore Management University for IBF certification courses on wealth planning and family office. She is also a trainer for Wealth Management Institute’s family office advisor program. Lee holds a Bachelor of Laws from the National University of Singapore. She is a Chartered Trustee appointed by the Singapore Trustee Association.

Since 2015, Khing Go has been managing partner of Marc Faber Group of Companies, which has offered specialist, client-tailored solutions to successful individuals and families around the world since 1970. Before this, he was CEO for Asia at Schroder & Co (Asia) Limited, where he worked from 2008 to 2015 following the acquisition of CBA Private Banking Asia. He was a Member of the Global Private Banking Executive Committee. From 2005 to 2008, he was CEO, Asia, Private Bank & Asset Management at Commonwealth Private Bank, a division of Commonwealth Bank of Australia. Previously, he had worked for KE Swan & Co as CEO and Founding Partner, Prudential-Bache Asia Pacific as Executive Director, Lehman Brothers as Senior Vice President, and Merrill Lynch International as Vice President.

Marcus has a broad practice but with a particular focus on private client, trusts, foundations, wills and estates (and related banking and finance, corporate and commercial work) for high net worth entrepreneurial clients and their businesses. He is an admitted and practising lawyer in both the BVI and Guernsey. He is also admitted as a barrister and solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand and as a solicitor of the High Court of England and Wales. He joined the Guernsey office of Ogier in 1999 and became a partnerin 2005. He relocated to our Hong Kong office in 2010 on a four year secondment and returned to Guernsey in January 2014. 

Mark Nelligan is Pershing’s senior business representative in Asia Pacific. He is based in Singapore and is responsible for relationship management and business development in the region. He is a member of BNY Mellon’s Asia Pacific Executive Committee and is chief executive officer of Pershing Securities Singapore Private Ltd, which holds a capital markets license to service Singapore financial intermediaries. He has over 20 years of financial services experience. Mark joined Pershing in October 2002 from ING Barings, Singapore, where he was the chief operating officer with responsibility for the bank’s commercial and investment banking operational support platform in South East Asia, Vietnam and India. Prior to this, he held several senior operational roles in Hong Kong, India and London. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales (FCA, ICAEW) and a graduate of Jesus College, Cambridge University.

Angie Han is a Senior Wealth Planner at Bank Pictet & Cie (Asia) Ltd., Singapore. Previously she worked with two global independent trust companies that provide tailored trust, fiduciary and corporate services. Prior to that, she was practising as a commercial litigation lawyer at Drew & Napier in Singapore. Angie was born in Singapore and graduated from the National University of Singapore with an LL.B (Hons) degree.

Anuj has over 20 years of experience in a Singapore tax and business environment. He is a partner in PwC Singapore’s tax financial services team and is the Head of Asset Management and Wealth Management Tax Practice at PwC Singapore. Anuj has spent most of his time dealing with international advisory work.  Anuj is actively involved in discussing asset management and wealth management issues with the relevant authorities and industry associations. He supports actively on policy matters affecting the asset and wealth management industry in Singapore. Anuj has provided extensive consulting advice to numerous family offices and fund management companies on various areas of taxation, including family offices, trust structures, restructuring of investments, setting up of Singapore investment funds and entry strategies into Asia. Specifically in the family office space, Anuj’s clients include families from Europe, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, India and China whose net worth ranges from $100m to several billions and the investment strategy of these families range from investments in public equity, private equity, real estate and others. In terms of external roles, Anuj is on the Executive Committee of the Alternatives Investment Managers Association’s Singapore chapter and the Executive Committee of the Singapore Business Federation’s South Asian Business Group. He is also a member of the Singapore Institute of Accredited Tax Professionals.

Ian Kloss has been with Old Mutual International since 2014 and has been appointed as the Head of Region (SE Asia) & Chief Executive Officer Singapore in February 2017. He has over 18 years’ experience in financial services, banking and insurance in the US, UK, and Hong Kong. Ian is responsible for managing the distribution of Old Mutual International’s solutions to retail and professional investors via licensed Financial Advisers. His priority is to continue to build Old Mutual International’s growth strategy in the region, expanding the distribution opportunities and broadening the propositions to the High Net Worth market and wider audience. A specialist in insurance and investments with a Diploma in regulated financial planning and discretionary investment management, Ian also provides technical development on retirement planning and legacy planning to Financial Advisers for their Internationally mobile High Net Worth clients.

Ivan Jean Charles Pelle, is the CEO and Founder of RGN Group, a bespoke premium service for private and corporate clients. The Group is located in five jurisdictions: Switzerland, Luxembourg, Malta, Cyprus and Singapore. Ivan JC Pelle is responsible of multidisciplinary consultancy services for the international needs of family offices, worldwide tax planning and advisory, construction and administration of structures for unique purposes and private equity in Real Estate. Ivan JC Pelle is Swiss Certified Tax Expert and member of ExpertSuisse and IFA, holder of an Executive Master of Advanced Studies in International Taxation (MASIT), Certified Public Accountant CPA registered at FAOA - Swiss Federal Audit Oversight Authority and participant at MSc in Digital Currency (blockchain and Cryptocurrencies) at the University of Nicosia (Cyprus). With over 25 years’s experience within the international taxation industry, Ivan JC Pelle also held directorial and board member positions in companies to represent stakeholders. His considerable knowledge and expertise, together with his passion for 24/7 service excellence and desire to help, have enabled him to build long lasting client relationships as a trusted/family advisor to intermediaries and HNWI; through the provision of comprehensive individual and corporate specialization services.

Jaydee is responsible for day-to-day operations of all departments at Raffles Family Office. Specialities:Business development, branding, ATL/BTL/TTL engagement, communications and media relations, senior-level account management and team leadership.

Having graduated in 1986 from Edinburgh University with an Honours Law Degree and Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice, Simon started his financial career with J.P Morgan / Saudi International Bank in London, New York and the Middle East specialising in corporate finance solutions for High Net Worth, Corporate and Family Office clients. In 1994, Simon moved to Clydesdale Bank PLC (then part of the National Australia Bank group) to build the Specialised Finance Unit before being asked (in 1999) to join the board of one of Scotland’s largest privately owned companies (Strathclyde Pharmaceuticals Limited) as Business Development Director. In 2006, upon the successful growth and sale of the principal parts of that business, Simon joined UBS AG in Scotland to drive forward its Scottish wealth management business. In 2008 Simon moved to Credit Suisse in Singapore to establish and develop their UK/International private banking operation before joining Cazenove Capital Management in June 2016. The firm rebranded to Schroders Wealth Management in September 2017. Simon is a GlobalScot and co-founder of the Scottish Business Association of Singapore.

Tan Woon Hum is widely regarded as one of the rare senior market leaders specialising in investment funds, REITs and trusts, especially Variable Capital Companies (VCCs) and family offices. He heads a team of specialist lawyers in the Trust, Asset & Wealth Management practice at major Singapore law firm Shook Lin & Bok LLP. He is ranked as a Band 1 leading investment funds lawyer by Chambers Asia-Pacific since 2014 and top 100 lawyer in Singapore by Asia Business Law Journal in 2023. He advises on fund formation, (including hedge funds, private equity funds, venture capital funds, real estate funds and single-family funds) using Singapore funds (including VCC) and offshore funds structures (eg. Cayman LP funds and segregated portfolio companies). He drafts and reviews the full range of fund documents and is extremely well versed with independent asset managers, external asset managers, multi-family offices and single-family offices, and has an extremely strong track record in securing the relevant regulatory licences and exemptions. His excellent and long-term professional relationship with the local regulators, authorities and major industry players add credence to his practice. He has advised on and helped clients launched about 100 VCCs as at May 2023. He has extensive experience in advising private clients (including ultra-high net worth individuals and single-family offices) and trustees on the establishment of private trusts, family offices, single-family funds, Sections 13O and 13U (formerly 13R and 13X) structures and drafts trust documents, fund documents, global investor programme documents and family charters. Woon Hum is bi-lingual (English and Mandarin), has a law degree and a MBA (Finance). He is a highly sought after speaker and speaks regularly at public conferences, forums and seminars since 2002 in Singapore, Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Dubai, Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh and Kuala Lumpur.

Kevin is the head of private wealth (Greater China) for Stephenson Harwood. He has been consistently ranked in top band by Chambers HNW and Legal 500 for Private Client lawyers in Hong Kong. He is one of the leading private wealth, tax and trust practitioners in Asia Pacific. Kevin also advises on family businesses, and has represented corporate clients on commercial transactions and establishing operations in Hong Kong. Qualified in Hong Kong and Canada, Kevin advises clients in respect of both jurisdictions. Kevin acts as counsel for major corporations headquartered in Hong Kong and elsewhere. He advises on the registration, corporate tax, intellectual property, employment and immigration aspects of doing business in Hong Kong as well as on cross-border transactions. Kevin also represents numerous high net worth clients from around the world on diverse matters including succession planning, family trust, tax advisory and compliance, wills and estate, asset preservation, family business succession and governance, private equity investments and philanthropy. Aside from representing trust settlors and beneficiaries, Kevin also advises trust companies on Hong Kong registration, licensing and regulatory compliance issues.

Josef has over twenty years of financial services experience, working in asset management, portfolio management and private banking. In 2009, he founded AXIOMA Wealth Management to bring his expertise in finance to private clients. Prior to founding AXIOMA, Josef was a director at Renaissance Capital in Moscow, a client advisor at UBS in Zurich, and the founder and owner of Meyer & Partner Asset Management. In 2018, seeing the need for more confidentiality amongst the clients, especially in the light of increasing transparency, Josef founded Swiss Trust AG and Swiss Trust Company. Josef was raised and educated in Switzerland, studying Eastern European History and Russian Literature at the University of Zurich. He is fluent in German, English, Russian and French.

Alfred is specially trained in Business Design Thinking by the prestigious Rotman School of Management’s Rotman DesignWorks in the University of Toronto. They are the foremost business thinkers in the World on integrative thinking and design thinking for business. Alfred is certified by the University of Toronto to practice, facilitate and teach Business Design Thinking to SME’s and government agencies on a commercial and educational level. Alfred received his Bachelor of Science in Hospitality Management from Florida International University in Miami USA. Thereafter he was selected by The Ritz- Carlton Hotel Company to join The Ritz-Carlton New York Battery Park opening the hotel through the difficult period of 911 for the next 3 years. After returning to Singapore he continued his passion at The Ritz-Carlton Millennia Singapore and late went on to join luxury hospitality brands such as Raffles Hotels & Resorts and Capella Hotels & Resorts. His area of focus was Sales & Marketing, Special Events & Services, and Quality Talent Selection. Alfred dedicated four years to teaching in Singapore Polytechnic as a full-time lecturer where he developed and taught modules and curriculum specialising in Tourism, and Business Design Thinking. Alfred has conducted customized workshops for academia and spoken at seminars at the Nanyang Technological University on Design Thinking, Service Innovation, and Experience Design. Alfred is a public certified Singapore Practicing Management Consultant.

Ken’s unique ability lies in his ability to synergise his sharp analytical mind and creative spirit in order to create user-centric innovations for sustainable growth. Ken received his Bachelor in Business Administration with Honours from the National University of Singapore and was subsequently a NUS Scholar awarded by the university to pursue his Masters of Science (MSc) in Research. Ken is specially trained in Business Design Thinking by the prestigious Rotman School of Management’s Rotman DesignWorks in the University of Toronto. They are the foremost business thinkers in the World on integrative thinking and design thinking for business. Alfred is certified by the University of Toronto to practice, facilitate and teach Business Design Thinking to SME’s and government agencies on a commercial and educational level. Ken dedicated more than ten years of teaching in Singapore Polytechnic as a fulltime lecturer where he developed and taught modules and curriculum specialising in Statistics and Business Design Thinking. Ken is currently an adjunct professor lecturing on core modules such as market research, statistics for business and management sciences at Curtin University and the University of London. Ken is a public certified Singapore Practicing Management Consultant.

Laurence was called to the UK Bar in 2006 having studied law at the University of Bristol, Warwick University and Nottingham Law School. He joined Sovereign as in-house Counsel at the beginning of 2008, and was appointed Sovereign Group Tax Counsel in 2010. Now Sovereign’s Head of Tax, Laurence has recently re-located to Asia and will be principally based from Sovereign’s Singapore office for the foreseeable future. Specialising in the UK tax treatment of overseas structures and pension schemes, Laurence typically advises high net worth individuals on tax mitigation strategies concerning future planning as well as unscrambling existing offshore structures. A large part of his practice involves advising on UK property ownership issues. Laurence advises high net worth clients directly, as well as professional clients who receive the advice on their behalf. He works closely with external tax counsel practising at the UK’s leading tax chambers; he also works closely with HMRC, particularly in the area of the UK tax treatment of overseas pension schemes. He is currently co-writing a book on UK pension taxation and is the ITPA Jurisdiction Editor for Singapore.    

Nicholas joined Transamerica Life (Bermuda) Ltd. (Transamerica life Bermuda) as the Chief Executive Officer of its Singapore branch office in August 2018. Transamerica Life Bermuda (Singapore) is fully authorised and regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). Nicholas brings over 24 years of experience with him in the financial services industry, including a wealth of expertise in high net worth (HNW) financial planning and distribution. Before joining Transamerica Life Bermuda (Singapore), he was Director, and Head of Product Management Insurance Solutions, APAC, with Credit Suisse Trust Limited based in Singapore where he was responsible for driving the growth of their HNW insurance business in Southeast Asia. Nicholas’s prior experience also includes many years in Hong Kong where he held senior management positions working with UBS, where he was responsible for the launch of their insurance offering as well as with AXA, Winterthur Life and Credit Suisse Group Private Bank. Nicholas holds a Master of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Business in Applied Economics from the University of South Australia, and a Graduate Diploma of Applied Finance and Investment from the Securities Institute of Australia. He also holds Hong Kong qualifications in insurance, MPF and the Hong Kong Securities and Investment Institute.

Kimmis Pun, a veteran banker for more than 30 years, is the Senior Managing Director, Head of Greater China, EFG Bank in Singapore. Prior to this appointment, she had been in senior management positions at UBS Bank, HSBC, Bank of America, BNP Paribas, Standard Chartered Bank Private Bank and VP Bank. She has MBA from Manchester Business School, University of Manchester, and professional qualifications CFP, ChFC, AIF, AEPP and IBFA. She is also the IBF Fellow awarded by IBF Singapore. Besides her banking career, she is the Board of Director of US-based Financial Planning Standard Board and a senior lecturer in 3 local universities for the past 15 years.

Yong Sheng is a senior associate in the private client and tax team. He advises clients on their estate planning and wealth protection and this includes establishing family offices, private trust companies, charitable and non-profit structures, as well as advising on the structuring and regulatory considerations of establishing such structures. He also assists individuals and families with developing efficient holding structures, and helps clients with applying for relevant tax incentives for their investment holding entities. He also advises corporations, ultra-high net worth individuals and their professional advisers on matters relating to income tax, stamp duty, GST, property tax and international tax and treaties. Prior to joining Withers KhattarWong, Yong Sheng was a senior associate with the tax and private client services team of one of the top law firms in Southeast Asia.

Michael is a prominent figure in the financial services industry in Asia. He is the founder and CEO of Hubbis, a renowned provider of intelligence and connectivity for the Asian wealth management industry. With a depth of experience and expertise, he has played a pivotal role in shaping the industry for over 30 years, becoming a leading industry presence in the events, professional development, and publishing space in the region. Hubbis is a multi-generational family-owned and managed business.

He has been actively involved in the Asia-Pacific region since 1993. And has lived in Asia since 1995, holding positions in Hong Kong, Sydney, and Singapore. 

For over 14-years, Hubbis has established itself as the gold standard media and events brand in wealth management thought leadership in Asia. Each year providing a very large body of cutting-edge editorial and sponsored content, organizing top-flight events. During that time Hubbis has become the platform of choice for many high-profile C-suite leaders to communicate their vision of the Asian wealth management.

Before his involvement with Hubbis, Michael founded Pacific Prospect in 2002, a financial services media company. Under his leadership, the company achieved significant success and was subsequently acquired by global business-to-business publisher Incisive Media in 2006. Michael continued to serve as the CEO of Pacific Prospect until October 2008. Prior to his entrepreneurial ventures, Michael garnered 5 years of experience in financial markets publishing.

His career in this field began in 1993 when he joined Euromoney Publications as the publisher of the quarterly magazine, International Bond Investor. In 1995, Michael joined Thomson Financial Services (now owned by LSEG) and spearheaded the conception and launch of Finance Asia magazine. During his tenure as Managing Director of Finance Asia, he also initiated the Asian Debt Review, Asian Private Capital Magazine, and the Finance Asia Conference Business. In 1997, he founded FIA Limited, further expanding his contributions to the financial publishing industry.

Born in North Wales, Michael served as the head boy of St David's College Llandudno. He holds a degree in Business Administration from Cardiff University. Beyond his professional endeavours, Michael is a family-oriented individual and is happily married with three children: Reanna, Garett, and Tarryn.

With a career in financial services spanning four decades, Joe has a strong commitment to the future success of the industry in Jersey. Joe commenced his professional life in the banking sector, rising to the position of CEO of Jersey and the Isle of Man for a major bank, which included responsibilities for trusts and investments. In recent years, he expanded his focus as Director of Financial Services within the government of Jersey, where he worked closely with industry and regulator to ensure the island’s position as a leading international finance centre. Before joining Jersey Finance in February 2019, Joe was working to establish high-reputation regulatory frameworks and business models for IFCs in the Middle East and Africa.

John Shoemaker is Senior Counsel with Butler Snow in their Singapore office. John has more than 30 years’ experience in tax, legal & regulatory compliance, and is a common law lawyer with educational emphasis on taxation, trusts & estate planning. He also has extensive experience in ensuring multi-jurisdictional compliance for fiduciary product offerings (working with multijurisdictional outside counsel & adapting products for sale in relevant jurisdictions), including product management skills to direct complex products from concept to fully operational status.

Kevin is the head of private wealth (Greater China) for Stephenson Harwood. He has been consistently ranked in top band by Chambers HNW and Legal 500 for Private Client lawyers in Hong Kong. He is one of the leading private wealth, tax and trust practitioners in Asia Pacific. Kevin also advises on family businesses, and has represented corporate clients on commercial transactions and establishing operations in Hong Kong. Qualified in Hong Kong and Canada, Kevin advises clients in respect of both jurisdictions. Kevin acts as counsel for major corporations headquartered in Hong Kong and elsewhere. He advises on the registration, corporate tax, intellectual property, employment and immigration aspects of doing business in Hong Kong as well as on cross-border transactions. Kevin also represents numerous high net worth clients from around the world on diverse matters including succession planning, family trust, tax advisory and compliance, wills and estate, asset preservation, family business succession and governance, private equity investments and philanthropy. Aside from representing trust settlors and beneficiaries, Kevin also advises trust companies on Hong Kong registration, licensing and regulatory compliance issues.

Gerard Gardner is Global Head of EFG International’s wealth structuring business, EFG Wealth Solutions. Headquartered in Jersey, Gerard has responsibility for fiduciary platforms and wealth planners in Asia, Europe and the Americas. He has been a director of various EFG group companies for over 20 years and is a member of EFG’s senior management college, the International Management Forum. Gerard also serves as a Director on the boards of a number of private client structures and real estate and private equity funds.  

Laurence was called to the UK Bar in 2006 having studied law at the University of Bristol, Warwick University and Nottingham Law School. He joined Sovereign as in-house Counsel at the beginning of 2008, and was appointed Sovereign Group Tax Counsel in 2010. Now Sovereign’s Head of Tax, Laurence has recently re-located to Asia and will be principally based from Sovereign’s Singapore office for the foreseeable future. Specialising in the UK tax treatment of overseas structures and pension schemes, Laurence typically advises high net worth individuals on tax mitigation strategies concerning future planning as well as unscrambling existing offshore structures. A large part of his practice involves advising on UK property ownership issues. Laurence advises high net worth clients directly, as well as professional clients who receive the advice on their behalf. He works closely with external tax counsel practising at the UK’s leading tax chambers; he also works closely with HMRC, particularly in the area of the UK tax treatment of overseas pension schemes. He is currently co-writing a book on UK pension taxation and is the ITPA Jurisdiction Editor for Singapore.    

Desmond is a Tax Partner within Ernst & Young (EY) FSO, focusing on Asset Management and International Tax and leads the FSO Asia Pacific Growth Markets and EY ASEAN WAM Tax and International Tax practice. With a working knowledge of transfer pricing, individual taxes, indirect taxes and transfer taxes, he offers holistic tax solutions to clients with global and regional presence, and provides clients with an end-to-end solution. In addition to helping clients set up of family office structures, Desmond’s experience also includes providing tax advisory services covering cross-border structuring.

Marcus has a broad practice but with a particular focus on private client, trusts, foundations, wills and estates (and related banking and finance, corporate and commercial work) for high net worth entrepreneurial clients and their businesses. He is an admitted and practising lawyer in both the BVI and Guernsey. He is also admitted as a barrister and solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand and as a solicitor of the High Court of England and Wales. He joined the Guernsey office of Ogier in 1999 and became a partnerin 2005. He relocated to our Hong Kong office in 2010 on a four year secondment and returned to Guernsey in January 2014. 

Jaydee is responsible for day-to-day operations of all departments at Raffles Family Office. Specialities:Business development, branding, ATL/BTL/TTL engagement, communications and media relations, senior-level account management and team leadership.

Dominic Volek is Group Head of Private Clients at Henley & Partners and a member of the Executive Committee. Originally from South Africa, he now spends his time between London, Dubai, and Singapore as a private client specialist in residence and citizenship planning and provides advice to ultra-high-net-worth individuals and their families across the globe. His work targets countries that are deemed most attractive to wealthy individuals in terms of mobility, security, privacy, personal tax, estate planning, and lifestyle. He is also a member of the firm’s Government Advisory practice, providing strategic advice to governments on the design, implementation, and promotion of successful investment migration programs. Dominic is a certified Chartered Accountant CA (SA), holding both a Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting with Honors and Bachelor of Arts in Corporate Communication. Prior to joining Henley & Partners, Dominic had a successful career as part of the Senior Management team in one of the big four accounting and advisory firms in Singapore, South Africa, and the USA. Dominic is frequently sought after as a speaker and thought leader on residence and citizenship planning, and he regularly provides commentary on the Henley Passport Index. He has been interviewed by top-tier media such as BBC, Quartz, and Bloomberg.

Rohit Bhuta is a senior executive with over 26 years’ experience, most of which (22 years) with the Macquarie Group. He has worked across eight key markets globally and has had extensive experience in the private banking, wealth management and asset management space. He has lived and worked in New Zealand, Australia, UK, South Africa, Malaysia, Hong Kong, India and Singapore. He has held senior leadership and strategic roles over the years, spanning multiple layers and levels of accountability. He is currently the CEO at Crossinvest (Asia) Pte Ltd, a family owned multi-generational independent asset management company providing (discretionary) investment management, investment advisory and family office solutions and services to investors globally. His role prior to this was working as a senior adviser to Macquarie Group’s Commodities and Financial Markets group, with a mandate to design and execute go-to-market strategies with the family offices, private banks and asset managers across Asia. His role prior to that and before a year-long sabbatical (2014), was the CEO of Religare Macquarie Private Wealth, a private wealth company domiciled in India but targeting high / ultra-high net worth investors globally. While Australia is home, he has operated out of South Africa since 2000 and Asia since 2005. Rohit has developed a deep understanding of the culture and the inherent nuances driving each economy within Africa and Asia, in particular within the wealth management / private banking industry.

Michael is a financial services tax partner with Deloitte Asia Pacific and is the firm’s Asia Pacific Financial Services Tax Leader. He has 35 years of tax experience; 27 years of which have been spent working in Asia having been based in Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong and Singapore. Prior to joining Deloitte, Michael had held senior tax roles with leading financial institutions and professional firms in Asia Pacific and academic appointments at the University of Melbourne and National University of Singapore. Michael advises on all areas of financial services tax (including indirect tax, information reporting, M&A tax and transfer pricing); and is a recognised industry tax expert. Michael works across all sectors including banking and securities, insurance and investment (and wealth) management. He is qualified as both a solicitor (Supreme Court of Victoria and High Court of Australia) and a Certified Public Accountant (Australia). Michael is an Accredited Tax Adviser: Income tax and GST (Singapore), a Certified Tax Adviser (Hong Kong) and a Trust and Estate Practitioner. He is a Fellow of the Taxation Institute of Hong Kong, an Associate of the Chartered Tax Institute of Malaysia and a member of the Singapore Institute of Directors. Michael holds a Master of Taxation from the University of Melbourne and a Master of Laws from the National University of Singapore. He is a member of the ASIFMA Tax Product Committee and a member of the AIMA Tax Committee in Singapore.

Since 2015, Khing Go has been managing partner of Marc Faber Group of Companies, which has offered specialist, client-tailored solutions to successful individuals and families around the world since 1970. Before this, he was CEO for Asia at Schroder & Co (Asia) Limited, where he worked from 2008 to 2015 following the acquisition of CBA Private Banking Asia. He was a Member of the Global Private Banking Executive Committee. From 2005 to 2008, he was CEO, Asia, Private Bank & Asset Management at Commonwealth Private Bank, a division of Commonwealth Bank of Australia. Previously, he had worked for KE Swan & Co as CEO and Founding Partner, Prudential-Bache Asia Pacific as Executive Director, Lehman Brothers as Senior Vice President, and Merrill Lynch International as Vice President.

Federico Vasoli is a lawyer admitted to the Bar of Milan, to the Malta’s Chamber of Advocates as an EU lawyer and by the Ministry of Justice as a foreign lawyer in Vietnam. He is the managing partner of the international legal and tax advisory firm dMTV, with offices in Singapore, Malta, Vietnam and Dubai. Prof Vasoli considers himself a very ethical person that values interpersonal relations, challenges, innovation and sound legal support that makes a positive difference for businesses. He is an adjunct professor at MIP Politecnico di Milano, Italy.

Ivan Jean Charles Pelle, is the CEO and Founder of RGN Group, a bespoke premium service for private and corporate clients. The Group is located in five jurisdictions: Switzerland, Luxembourg, Malta, Cyprus and Singapore. Ivan JC Pelle is responsible of multidisciplinary consultancy services for the international needs of family offices, worldwide tax planning and advisory, construction and administration of structures for unique purposes and private equity in Real Estate. Ivan JC Pelle is Swiss Certified Tax Expert and member of ExpertSuisse and IFA, holder of an Executive Master of Advanced Studies in International Taxation (MASIT), Certified Public Accountant CPA registered at FAOA - Swiss Federal Audit Oversight Authority and participant at MSc in Digital Currency (blockchain and Cryptocurrencies) at the University of Nicosia (Cyprus). With over 25 years’s experience within the international taxation industry, Ivan JC Pelle also held directorial and board member positions in companies to represent stakeholders. His considerable knowledge and expertise, together with his passion for 24/7 service excellence and desire to help, have enabled him to build long lasting client relationships as a trusted/family advisor to intermediaries and HNWI; through the provision of comprehensive individual and corporate specialization services.

Josef has over twenty years of financial services experience, working in asset management, portfolio management and private banking. In 2009, he founded AXIOMA Wealth Management to bring his expertise in finance to private clients. Prior to founding AXIOMA, Josef was a director at Renaissance Capital in Moscow, a client advisor at UBS in Zurich, and the founder and owner of Meyer & Partner Asset Management. In 2018, seeing the need for more confidentiality amongst the clients, especially in the light of increasing transparency, Josef founded Swiss Trust AG and Swiss Trust Company. Josef was raised and educated in Switzerland, studying Eastern European History and Russian Literature at the University of Zurich. He is fluent in German, English, Russian and French.

Naomi Rive is a Group Director and Head of Family Office at independent trust business, Highvern. A lawyer by training, Naomi was called to the English Bar in 1999 and re-qualified as a Jersey Advocate in 2003. During her time as a Partner of law firm, Appleby, Naomi provided wealth-structuring advice to high net worth individuals, international private banks and trust companies. In 2014, Naomi joined Coutts & Co Trustees (Jersey) Limited where she was a Board Director and a part of the senior management team. The business was subject to a management buy-out in late 2016 in which Naomi played a key role and this led to the business being re-branded as Highvern. Naomi works closely with Highvern’s international client base and their independent legal, tax and investment advisers to ensure the establishment and implementation of robust and sustainable wealth planning structures. Naomi has considerable experience of providing trustee services in connection with complex trust structures and sitting on the board of directors of private trust companies. Naomi is a former Chair to STEP in Jersey and sits on the Jersey Finance Trusts Law Working Party. She is also a former adjunct-professor of trusts at the Jersey Institute of Law.

Lee Wong is Head of Family Services, Asia at Lombard Odier. Lee is responsible for leading Lombard Odier’s wealth planning and family services proposition, which is a key component of the Bank’s growth strategy in the region. Before joining Lombard Odier, Lee amassed over 22 years of experience in the wealth management industry. She joined from Union Bancaire Privée in Singapore, where she was Head of Wealth Planning for South Asia and was responsible for leading a team advising high net worth clients on their family wealth transition, family governance, as well as philanthropic aspirations. Lee is a member of the MAS-EDB Family Office workgroup as well as the Wealth Management Institute’s expert panel on Family Offices. She is a regular trainer for Singapore Management University for IBF certification courses on wealth planning and family office. She is also a trainer for Wealth Management Institute’s family office advisor program. Lee holds a Bachelor of Laws from the National University of Singapore. She is a Chartered Trustee appointed by the Singapore Trustee Association.

Tan Woon Hum is widely regarded as one of the rare senior market leaders specialising in investment funds, REITs and trusts, especially Variable Capital Companies (VCCs) and family offices. He heads a team of specialist lawyers in the Trust, Asset & Wealth Management practice at major Singapore law firm Shook Lin & Bok LLP. He is ranked as a Band 1 leading investment funds lawyer by Chambers Asia-Pacific since 2014 and top 100 lawyer in Singapore by Asia Business Law Journal in 2023. He advises on fund formation, (including hedge funds, private equity funds, venture capital funds, real estate funds and single-family funds) using Singapore funds (including VCC) and offshore funds structures (eg. Cayman LP funds and segregated portfolio companies). He drafts and reviews the full range of fund documents and is extremely well versed with independent asset managers, external asset managers, multi-family offices and single-family offices, and has an extremely strong track record in securing the relevant regulatory licences and exemptions. His excellent and long-term professional relationship with the local regulators, authorities and major industry players add credence to his practice. He has advised on and helped clients launched about 100 VCCs as at May 2023. He has extensive experience in advising private clients (including ultra-high net worth individuals and single-family offices) and trustees on the establishment of private trusts, family offices, single-family funds, Sections 13O and 13U (formerly 13R and 13X) structures and drafts trust documents, fund documents, global investor programme documents and family charters. Woon Hum is bi-lingual (English and Mandarin), has a law degree and a MBA (Finance). He is a highly sought after speaker and speaks regularly at public conferences, forums and seminars since 2002 in Singapore, Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Dubai, Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh and Kuala Lumpur.

Prior to joining Crossbridge Capital, Guita worked for Credit Suisse in Switzerland and the UAE as a Relationship Manager focused on the Indian Subcontinent and the NRI markets. She joined Credit Suisse after twelve years in the art market where she held senior management and business development positions, notably at the International Art and Antique Loss Register (The Art Loss Register), an art recovery service owned by Christie’s, Sotheby’s and AXA amongst others, and at Gabrius UK Ltd, a firm specialising in publishing products aimed at the art investment market. Guita received her BA (Hons.) degree in Economics from the University of Virginia and her MA degree in International Affairs from Columbia University in New York.

Rohit Ganguli is the Head of Wealth Planning Asia at EFG Bank, he has two decades of experience working with clients to assist them in achieving their wealth planning objectives especially in relation to succession, legacy and asset protection needs. This often involves the use of trusts, foundations, corporate entities and other holding vehicles. Rohit is responsible for all aspects of the insurance activity in EFG in Asia. This involves supporting all insurance related discussions – including identifying life insurance referral opportunities based on clients’ wealth and liquidity planning needs, extensively interacting with external counter parties (such as insurance brokers and carriers) and also actively engaging with related stake holders within the bank. He manages all discussions around single family offices (SFO) and works closely with clients on the benefits and processes involved in the set up of SFOs. Rohit has a background in accountancy and also holds a Master’s degree in International Tax Law from the University of Leiden in the Netherlands. He is a registered trust and estate practitioner (TEP) and holds a diploma from the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners and is also certified with the Singapore College of Insurance. He has worked across geographies and has been with Big 4 consulting firms and MNCs prior to joining the bank.

Woon Shiu has over 20 years of expertise in marketing, client development and professional training in family office structuring, trusts, high-net-worth life insurance and estate planning in Asia Pacific (especially China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia). Over the years, Woon Shiu has handled multiple landmark transactions, advising ultra-high net-worth individuals and founding members of banking conglomerates on matters relating to taxes, multi-generational endowment funds, planning of global assets, and much more. Woon Shiu is also an adjunct professor at the Wealth Management Institute (in Nanyang Technological University) and regularly lectures private bankers, lawyers and trust practitioners on wealth structuring and estate succession. He has also spoken as a guest lecturer at universities in China, and his views on family businesses are regularly featured in the Financial Times, Barron’s Asia, Singapore Business Times, China Daily and other renowned publications. Woon Shiu has advised numerous ultra-high net-worth families across Asia Pacific in the areas of strategic structuring of their estate and succession planning. He commonly engages multi-generation families, giving them advice on successfully establishing and implementing their desired family governance and philanthropic strategies. He holds a STEP certification and is a Solicitor in England and Wales, as well as an Advocate and Solicitor in Singapore. Woon Shiu is fluent in English and Mandarin – often lecturing in both languages – and is also conversant in Cantonese, Hokkien and Hainanese.

Alfred is specially trained in Business Design Thinking by the prestigious Rotman School of Management’s Rotman DesignWorks in the University of Toronto. They are the foremost business thinkers in the World on integrative thinking and design thinking for business. Alfred is certified by the University of Toronto to practice, facilitate and teach Business Design Thinking to SME’s and government agencies on a commercial and educational level. Alfred received his Bachelor of Science in Hospitality Management from Florida International University in Miami USA. Thereafter he was selected by The Ritz- Carlton Hotel Company to join The Ritz-Carlton New York Battery Park opening the hotel through the difficult period of 911 for the next 3 years. After returning to Singapore he continued his passion at The Ritz-Carlton Millennia Singapore and late went on to join luxury hospitality brands such as Raffles Hotels & Resorts and Capella Hotels & Resorts. His area of focus was Sales & Marketing, Special Events & Services, and Quality Talent Selection. Alfred dedicated four years to teaching in Singapore Polytechnic as a full-time lecturer where he developed and taught modules and curriculum specialising in Tourism, and Business Design Thinking. Alfred has conducted customized workshops for academia and spoken at seminars at the Nanyang Technological University on Design Thinking, Service Innovation, and Experience Design. Alfred is a public certified Singapore Practicing Management Consultant.

Fiona Chan is a partner in the corporate department and private client & trust department of Appleby’s Hong Kong office, advising on a full spectrum of banking and finance, non-contentious insurance, technology and innovation, private client and trust matters relating to the laws of Bermuda, British Virgin Islands and Cayman Islands. She is a member of Appleby’s economic substance and technology and innovation group. Fiona has almost 20 years of offshore and onshore experience in the Asian market. Her broad offshore law practice spans banking and finance transactions including acquisition, leveraged and project financing, shipping and aircraft financing, structured products, bond issuance and restructuring of corporates and financial institutions. In the private client practice space, Fiona specialises in advising on Bermuda insurances and trust structures of various offshore jurisdictions. She also assists clients with setting up employee incentive schemes of different nature and forms, with or without trust structures. Fiona has been widely recognised by her clients as well as legal directories. She was selected as one of the region’s 10 most notable offshore lawyers of the Asian Legal Business’ Offshore Client Choice List in 2017, 2018 and 2019 respectively. She was also selected as one of the 2017 Influential Women in Re/Insurance by Intelligent Insurer and recognised in Legal 500 Asia-Pacific (Offshore). She regularly speaks at conferences and seminars and is often asked to contribute to policy discussions, interviews and articles for leading industry organisations and journals in the offshore space. Fiona is fluent in English, Mandarin and Cantonese.

Edmund is a senior partner heading up the firm’s Tax practice with three decades of experience in advising multinational organisations on cross-border tax planning, transfer pricing and tax disputes. He also advises on international trade issues such as customs, WTO and free-trade agreements. Edmund also leads the firm’s Trust, Estates and Wealth Preservation practice and advises high net worth individuals, private banks and trust companies in personal tax, as well as in trust and estate planning matters. Edmund was invited by the government to serve as a Judicial Commissioner at the Supreme Court and served from 2013 to 2016. On stepping down, he was appointed Senior Counsel in 2017, making him the first and only Tax and Trust lawyer to be given this accolade nationwide. Prior to his appointment to the Singapore judiciary in 2013, Edmund was named a Tier 1 lawyer by The Legal 500 Asia Pacific for Tax in 2012. His views on tax and wealth management were widely sought and publicised in the media, such as Bloomberg, BBC, Channel NewsAsia, Reuters, The Financial Times and The Straits Times. He was also a founding partner of a Singapore law firm that was associated with an international law firm, where he headed up the Tax and Wealth Management practices in Singapore. Edmund is a former President and an honorary member of the Singapore Trustees Association (STA).

Yong Sheng is a senior associate in the private client and tax team. He advises clients on their estate planning and wealth protection and this includes establishing family offices, private trust companies, charitable and non-profit structures, as well as advising on the structuring and regulatory considerations of establishing such structures. He also assists individuals and families with developing efficient holding structures, and helps clients with applying for relevant tax incentives for their investment holding entities. He also advises corporations, ultra-high net worth individuals and their professional advisers on matters relating to income tax, stamp duty, GST, property tax and international tax and treaties. Prior to joining Withers KhattarWong, Yong Sheng was a senior associate with the tax and private client services team of one of the top law firms in Southeast Asia.

Angie Han is a Senior Wealth Planner at Bank Pictet & Cie (Asia) Ltd., Singapore. Previously she worked with two global independent trust companies that provide tailored trust, fiduciary and corporate services. Prior to that, she was practising as a commercial litigation lawyer at Drew & Napier in Singapore. Angie was born in Singapore and graduated from the National University of Singapore with an LL.B (Hons) degree.

Mark Smallwood TEP is based in the UK from where he advises predominantly Asian UHNW families on the structuring and ongoing administration and management of their estate and succession plan, family office, investment process and governance. He sits on the Business Advisory Council of a successful privately held business spanning multiple jurisdictions. After nearly 35 years in financial services across the global, including the UK, Caribbean, Switzerland, Hong Kong and Singapore and having held senior positions in one of the leading global private banks, Mark has unique insights and brings an independent, unconflicted view which enables UHNW families to objectively evaluate their decision making process.

Reach our to Mark: [email protected]

Mark Smallwood TEP is based in the UK from where he advises predominantly Asian UHNW families on the structuring and ongoing administration and management of their estate and succession plan, family office, investment process and governance. He sits on the Business Advisory Council of a successful privately held business spanning multiple jurisdictions. After nearly 35 years in financial services across the global, including the UK, Caribbean, Switzerland, Hong Kong and Singapore and having held senior positions in one of the leading global private banks, Mark has unique insights and brings an independent, unconflicted view which enables UHNW families to objectively evaluate their decision making process.

Reach our to Mark: [email protected]

Mark Smallwood TEP is based in the UK from where he advises predominantly Asian UHNW families on the structuring and ongoing administration and management of their estate and succession plan, family office, investment process and governance. He sits on the Business Advisory Council of a successful privately held business spanning multiple jurisdictions. After nearly 35 years in financial services across the global, including the UK, Caribbean, Switzerland, Hong Kong and Singapore and having held senior positions in one of the leading global private banks, Mark has unique insights and brings an independent, unconflicted view which enables UHNW families to objectively evaluate their decision making process.

Reach our to Mark: [email protected]

Mark Smallwood TEP is based in the UK from where he advises predominantly Asian UHNW families on the structuring and ongoing administration and management of their estate and succession plan, family office, investment process and governance. He sits on the Business Advisory Council of a successful privately held business spanning multiple jurisdictions. After nearly 35 years in financial services across the global, including the UK, Caribbean, Switzerland, Hong Kong and Singapore and having held senior positions in one of the leading global private banks, Mark has unique insights and brings an independent, unconflicted view which enables UHNW families to objectively evaluate their decision making process.

Reach our to Mark: [email protected]

Mark Smallwood TEP is based in the UK from where he advises predominantly Asian UHNW families on the structuring and ongoing administration and management of their estate and succession plan, family office, investment process and governance. He sits on the Business Advisory Council of a successful privately held business spanning multiple jurisdictions. After nearly 35 years in financial services across the global, including the UK, Caribbean, Switzerland, Hong Kong and Singapore and having held senior positions in one of the leading global private banks, Mark has unique insights and brings an independent, unconflicted view which enables UHNW families to objectively evaluate their decision making process.

Reach our to Mark: [email protected]

Mark Smallwood TEP is based in the UK from where he advises predominantly Asian UHNW families on the structuring and ongoing administration and management of their estate and succession plan, family office, investment process and governance. He sits on the Business Advisory Council of a successful privately held business spanning multiple jurisdictions. After nearly 35 years in financial services across the global, including the UK, Caribbean, Switzerland, Hong Kong and Singapore and having held senior positions in one of the leading global private banks, Mark has unique insights and brings an independent, unconflicted view which enables UHNW families to objectively evaluate their decision making process.

Reach our to Mark: [email protected]