INDIA WEALTH MANAGEMENT FORUM 2023

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.

Anupam Guha is the Head of Private Wealth Management practice at ICICI Securities Ltd. Anupam has been with the ICICI Group for the last 16 years across retail, institutional and private banking business. He has been a part of the International and Domestic Private Banking business for more than a decade.

He is a founding member that helped set up Private Wealth business at ICICI Securities (I-Sec). I-Sec is one of the leading and fastest growing Private Wealth practice in India and manages some of the wealthiest families in the country. I-Sec today manages close to INR 35,000 Crs of assets of its clients.

I-Sec Private Wealth caters to UHNI and Family Office clients and given the insight with such clients, partners with them in their business requirement and expansion plans through fund raising and investment banking solutions, besides investment & real estate solutions and estate planning.

Prior to this, Anupam was the Country Head of Oman with ICICI Securities. He was successful in showcasing the India opportunity to Sovereign and Pension Funds, local Institutions and the Indian Diaspora. He was part of the fund raising team that raised more than USD 1 billion from GCC for Private Equity and Real Estate investments in India.

Pranav is working with the Trident Trust Group to establish a formal presence for the Group in India. He began his career as an auditor with one of the big four accounting firms in London, before returning to India to help set up the first liability insurance company there. Most recently, Pranav worked as a Director and head of key clients for an international bank in India, prior to which he headed the India office for a fiduciary services provider. Pranav specialises in succession and estate planning and has advised many Indian and international HNWIs in his 25- year career.

Gautami heads the Estate Planning Division and is engaged in offering succession and estate planning solutions to private clients.  She has a rich experience in law and financial services industry. Gautami set up Kotak's Estate Planning business and has been with Kotak since 2005. Prior to joining Kotak, Gautami was associated with ICICI Bank for 1 year and was with Kanga & Company, one of the leading and oldest Law Firms. She is a qualified Solicitor and a member of Bombay Incorporated Law Society and is also a Law Graduate from Mumbai University. When she is not advising clients, Gautami is engaged in trekking, reading and photography.

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.

Mr. Virendra Somwanshi is the Head of Wealth Management, Capital markets and NRI business and looks at the overall strategy and execution of these businesses at Bank of Baroda.He has to his credit more than 25 years of rich, multi geography experience of Retail banking & Private wealth Management and has served both multinational and Indian corporates in various leadership roles and also in the capacity as a Board Member. With over 17 years at Citi, he has worked in multiple businesses across consumer banking both assets and liabilities, wealth management, securities and investments management in India and Singapore. His last Designation with Citi was Country Head – Citi Wealth Advisors. Prior to joining Bank of Baroda, he was designated as the MD & CEO of Motilal Oswal Private Wealth management. He is considered as a thought leader in the wealth management industry and represents the industry in various forums. Mr. Virendra is a Bachelor in Mechanical Engineering and holds a MBA degree from Symbiosis Institute of Business Management, Pune University. He is a Sports enthusiast and an Avid Full Marathoner.

Sean joined Trident Trust in 2016 and has overall responsibility for Trident’s Singapore operations. Sean has held senior positions at both independent and institutional trust companies during his 30-year career, which spans both Asia and Europe. He has advised many international high net worth clients on the use of trusts and other estate planning vehicles. Sean is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants and a qualified Trust & Estate Practitioner.

Bringing years of expertise to the role, Sneha specialises in creating bespoke wealth planning solutions for UHNW individuals and families. She provides advice to clients on their estate and succession planning requirements that includes advisory on creation and structuring of Trusts and Wills with best practice governance principles to ensure their longevity and success as well on alternate residency and citizenship planning. Her in-depth understanding of governance issues in multi-generational business families enables addressing of business and relationship challenges that such families often encounter. She has worked with organisations such as Barclays Bank PLC., and Kotak Family Office. She is a Chartered Trust and Estate Planner (CTEP)TM and holds an MBA from Durham University Business School (UK).

With more than two decades of experience in Financial Services across Wealth Management and Private Banking, Arpita has been part of the core team that set up Centrum Wealth Limited. An Electrical Engineer and MBA, Finance, from Faculty of Management Studies (FMS), Delhi, she also holds the STEP Professional Postgraduate Diploma in Private Wealth Advising which focuses on cross boarder succession, international taxation and family business advising. Prior to Centrum, she was the Head of Premier Banking at HSBC and was responsible for managing one of the largest affluent banking propositions in the country. She left HSBC to be part of the founding team of Centrum Wealth Limited. At HSBC India, she was rated among the top 3% of employees globally with an EDC (Executive Development Centre) Ranking of 1 in 2010 and identified as a part of the Country Talent Pool. As Co-Head of Centrum Wealth, she has been responsible for providing strategic direction to the firm and leading the firm to a leading position in the business. She is also credited with conceptualizing and successfully executing some of the very significant growth initiatives and an array of proposition enhancements at the firm. Most notable among them include Centrum’s Family Office Business that provides a comprehensive one-stop investment management, wealth planning, administration and structuring, tax and legal advisory, corporate solutions, philanthropy and CSR opportunities. Centrum Wealth Limited was chosen by Private Banker International (PBI) for the prestigious Best Family Office Award at their 30th Annual Private Banker International Global Wealth Awards 2020. She seeded the Structured and Alternate products business line, an area where the firm has established solid credentials and where the business has grown manifold in the firm’s short existence. She set up the offshore businesses for Centrum Wealth office in Singapore. As an Executive Director on the company’s board, she has helped to steer the firm from the venture to growth stage in the very competitive wealth management space. She is also an Independent Director on the board of the West Coast Paper Mills Ltd (WCPM), one of the largest paper manufacturers in the country. She has received several awards and recognitions for her work and contribution. She was featured among India's Top 100 "Women in Finance" - 2019 presented by AIWMI. She was a winner of the Women Super Achievers Award in the field of Finance by the World Women Leadership Congress in Feb 2017. Arpita was appreciated by the Business Sight Magazine as one of the “BS the 10 Successful Business Women to Watch In 2019 for her contribution in Indian Business “. She takes active interest in estate and succession planning and is a member of the Indian chapter of STEP, an international body of trust and estate planning professionals and the International Tax Planning Associates (ITPA). She is also a regular speaker in wealth management, family office and alternative product forums and seminars.

Alok Saigal is President and the Head of Private Wealth at Edelweiss. He joined Edelweiss in 2014 and has been a key leader in the transformation and scale up of the wealth business. He founded the Family office practice and introduced Wealth Structuring and Estate Planning for the Ultra HNI customers. Alok, for four years, oversaw the Products and Investment Advisory functions as well. Under his leadership, the Wealth AUA has crossed USD 28 Bn and the business today serves some of the most marquee clients across the country. Alok is a member of the Management Committee of the Edelweiss Group. Alok has over 20 years of work experience. Prior to Edelweiss, Alok was associated with Darashaw. He set up and anchored the company’s business in Singapore with focus on Wealth Management & Strategic Initiatives. Post this global exposure, he spearheaded the Investment Management and Private Client platform at Darashaw in Mumbai. He has also been associated with HDFC Bank where he looked after Funding & Banking Solutions for Large Indian Corporates & MNCs as part of the corporate banking group. Alok holds a Master’s degree in Economics from the Delhi School of Economics, Delhi University

Sunita is a well-known authority and legal adviser in the private wealth community. Her trusted relationships with UAE Regulatory authorities, financial advisors, corporate services providers, family offices and banks enable her to provide expert legal advice to her private wealth clients, especially in the GCC, Southwest Asia and Africa. She is a full member of STEP (Africa and Arabia) and often acts as moderator at international forums and conferences. As a thought leader, Sunita regularly publishes in prominent publications and participated, amongst other in the ground-breaking “Women in Wealth Management” GCC roadshow. She is recognised by various legal directories such as Chambers & Partners, Global Stars Report, and was peer-selected for the Private Client Global Elite Directory (2022 – 2023). Sunita has actively promoted women’s empowerment for young professionals in India and the Middle East and is a professional mentor for young female executives in the Middle East.

A JBIMS alumni, Devang has more than two decades of experience in the areas of investment advisory, equity research, equity sales & portfolio management. He has been at the forefront of managing portfolios of top promoters/family offices & UHNI clients both based out of India & overseas. His core competence is in creating & managing personalized, scientific & holistic portfolios. A strong advocate of ethical investing & firm believer in wealth creation, preservation & multiplication through long term fundamental equity investing, Devang has been the face of his organizations & has been able to establish a lot of conviction on equity markets amongst the HNI & retail investors. He is an eminent speaker at a number of Investor Camps & events and a regularly sought after face in the Electronic Business, Print & Digital media. He has addressed around 200 large sized Investor Camps attended by thousands of investors, traveling across the length & breadth of India, right from large cities to small towns like Karur, Tirunelveli, Madurai, Erode, down South to Patiala, Panipat, Bhatinda & Jammu up North. Investor awareness & empowering the new age investors has been very close to his heart. He is admired for his oratory skills & has a strong connect with the investing community. Devang regularly features on channels like CNBC TV18, CNBC Awaaz, ET Now, Zee Business, Bloomberg TV & CNBC Bazaar. His writing skills are evident from the fact that his authored articles & quotes are carried in publications like The Economic Times, Mint, Business Standard, Hindu Business Line, Business World, Business India, Fortune, Wall street journal etc. He often contributes his authored articles on Moneycontrol & ETMarkets. Mr. Mehta is frequently invited in prestigious industry forums like Outlook Money Panel discussions, flagship events of Capital markets & institutions like Rotary Club etc. He is a speaker on eminent panels for Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, Visiting & Guest Faculty at reputed Business Schools like IIMs, IIT, JBIMS, BSE Institute of Capital Markets, Sydenham Institute, N. L Dalmia etc.  He is more than happy to contribute to the community in every possible way with a slogan “Knowledge is Power”. He was also one of the founder member of the Knowledge Sharing forum.

Professional Journey: 

Currently working with Centrum Wealth as Director & Head of Equity Advisory & NDPMS – since last 5 years: He has been responsible for creating a very strong & robust Equity Advisory/NDPMS platform for Centrum Wealth & today he along with his team manages top Indian promoters/family offices/UHNI clients/Top NRIs. Prior to Centrum Devang worked with BNP Paribas Wealth Management (the top French Bank) for 3 years, as Head of Equites for their India Division: Once again he was responsible for starting the Advisory platform which provided customized portfolio solutions to clients based out of Hongkong, Singapore, Dubai & India. These were mega wealth clients & who’s who of the Indian diaspora in Asia pacific region. Previously Worked with Anand Rathi Financial Services as Sr. Vice President & Head – Equity Advisory for 6 years: Instrumental in Setting up a Pan India Equity Advisory Desk which provided research support & Portfolio Advice to UHNI, Corporates clients & Business Partners. Previously worked with Angel Broking as an Investment Advisor for 5 years: He was involved in setting up important processes for research based advisory & hugely successful portfolio restructuring initiative.

Bijal joined the Firm in 2013 as a Partner to expand and build the Tax and Investment Funds practice. On private client matters she has advised individuals and family businesses from a legal, regulatory and tax perspective. She has experience in rolling out a comprehensive succession plan for clients, re-structuring of family businesses including HUFs and family arrangements, drafting wills, creation of trusts, etc. She is frequently invited to speak at domestic and international conferences on matters of Indian estate and succession planning and has several publications to her credit. Bijal is highly acclaimed for her dedication, in-depth understanding and knowledge of taxation, estate planning and structuring of funds; and for her solution oriented approach. Bijal regularly features on an annual basis in the Chambers & Partners (Asia – Pacific), Citiwealth Leaders List, Legal 500, International Tax Review (Asia Pacific), Who’s Who Legal “Corporate Tax Guide, Private Client Global Elite, Expert Guides – Tax 2018, Indian Lawyer 250 Law Business Research as a leader in the field of taxation and private client in India. She has also been ranked as a Band 1 lawyer for Private Wealth Law by Chambers & Partners for 2019 and 2020. Bijal served as an officer-elect on the Individual Tax & Private Client Committee of the International Bar Association. She is ex-officio member of the Steering Committee of the International Wealth Advisors Forum, which is a global think tank for the exchange of emerging trends in estate and succession planning.

Markus has been with Trident Trust for the past 12 years, following a 20-year career in private banking, where he specialised in working with Asian and NRI/Indian clients. Initially Managing Director of Trident’s Singapore office, he is now Regional Managing Director for the Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa business, with responsibility for Trident’s offices in Dubai, Geneva, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Mauritius, Singapore and Zurich. In addition to leading the expansion of Trident Trust’s business in Asia, Markus is also actively involved in many key client relationships of the Group.

Nitin is the MD & CEO of Avendus Wealth Management. He has over two decades of rich experience in private banking, asset management and wealth management. His role and responsibility at Avendus include leading a team of high performing private bankers, product specialists, portfolio managers and strategic business functions to serve large UHNI clients, family offices and treasuries spread across India. Nitin joined Avendus from Standard Chartered Bank where he was Managing Director & Head of the Wealth Management business, that comprised of 300+ team members. Under his leadership, the business recorded assets under management and custody of USD 14 billion in 2019. Nitin was also on the Board of Standard Chartered Securities India and a member of the Country Management Team for Standard Chartered Bank. Prior to joining Standard Chartered, he spent 17 years with HSBC in a variety of roles, with his last role as the Global Head of Fund Strategy for HSBC Private Bank, based in London. At HSBC, he managed an AUM of USD 40 billion. He established the global funds desk at HSBC with responsibility for fund selection, strategic partnership programs with asset managers, and led the distribution efforts for mutual funds and ETFs across the Private Bank customer base globally. Nitin was also a member of HSBC Private Bank Global Investment Committee. Nitin holds an MBA degree from IIM, Bangalore and is a graduate in Economics from Delhi University.

Nakul Beri is the Senior Managing Director of Global Client Coverage and Origination at Waterfield Advisors, India’s largest independent Multi-Family Office and Wealth Advisory company. He spearheads the global investments division at Waterfield and is responsible for overseeing and developing the vertical and its strategy. With over 26 years of work experience, he carries an extensive knowledge of onshore and offshore investments and structuring. Mr Beri has successfully led teams in various organizations including Incred, Barclays in India and Standard Chartered in Singapore, Additionally, he also holds leadership positions as a part of the board of governors at Manipal University and serves as an advisor for Venture Catalyst. In addition to his wealth of work experience, Mr Beri also holds postgraduate degrees in Business Administration from the University of Bradford and Carnegie Mellon.

Ashish Shanker's responsibilities encompass estate planning, Products & Research, Financial Strategy, and Client Experience. In this capacity, he holds responsibility for research and investment strategies across several asset classes in the firm’s unit focusing on private wealth management. Leveraging more than 15 years of experience in the financial sector, he also has played a significant role in four start-up teams. In a career spanning over 15 years Ashish Shanker’s areas of expertise include market research, financial products, strategy and funds management.

A business management graduate of the University of Bangalore in India, he began his capital markets career as a Research Executive for a leading regional brokerage firm. Subsequently he worked in the asset management industry for over six years in Franklin Templeton Investments and HSBC Asset Management in various capacities. Subsequently Ashish has spent the last 7 years in advisory, research and product roles across private wealth management platforms including as head of investment advisory at Standard Chartered Private Bank and Senior Director at Sarasin Alpen, India. He has won several accolades during his stint at these organisations.

Outside of his professional duties, Ashish Shankar enjoys playing table tennis and snooker, listening to music, and delving into history. He has represented Maharashtra and Bangalore university in table tennis at the highest level in the country and won several championships.

Manish Kathuria is the President & Business head for the affluent & NRI consumer segments at Kotak Mahindra bank. He is also a member of the Kotak Leadership team of the bank. Manish has been part of the Kotak team for 18 years. He was a founding member of the affluent banking set up since 2011. Kotak Mahindra bank offers Privy league program to its affluent customers which is focused on providing banking & investment solutions to this segment. Currently the business is spread across 32 cities and more than 400 relationship managers. He is also responsible for the NRI customer segment, which caters to the Indian diaspora across the world. He is very passionate about connecting to this segment and believes that there is a huge opportunity to offer financial solutions to these clients. Before joining Kotak, Manish was part of ICICI retail banking team for 5 years. He holds a MBA from IILM, New Delhi. He is also a graduate of General management program from IIM - Ahmedabad and certified in leadership program at ISB.