Philippines Wealth Management Forum 2017

Mr. Ferrer has 29 years of experience in banking, asset management, and private equity. Currently, he is the President of the Philippine Investment Funds Association (PIFA). He was the President of the Fund Managers Association of the Philippines (FMAP) in 2011-2012, and still maintains a seat on its Board of Senior Advisers.

Prior to ATRAM, Mr. Ferrer spent 15 years with ING Group holding various positions which include Country Manager of ING Investment Management (IIM) Philippines, Country Manager IIM Taiwan and General Manager for IIM South Asia.​

Joe is a former country managing director of several leading financial institutions, including banks and securities trading houses. Joe has more than 30 years of experience in the wealth management industry, and has acquired extensive knowledge of banking products and financial instruments. He is actively involved in the set-up of fiduciary structures.

Dicky Fong is the Head of Institutional Sales – North Asia of Amicorp Group. 

Dicky is a senior trust specialist with experience in tax advisory and succession planning. Dicky is a qualified accountant in Australia, Hong Kong and the United Kingdom. Dicky most recent engagement was with Bank Julius Baer as a wealth planner covering North Asia.  Dicky’s earlier professional career includes working in Citi Private Bank, as global wealth structuring consultant and as a tax partner with BDO.

Dicky is very experienced in assisting High Net Worth clients on wealth and succession planning. Dicky assisted private banks relationship managers to attend to specific needs on wealth planning and succession planning, including dealing with regulatory changes and reporting arising from CRS and FATCA. Dicky has specific trust experience with Cayman, BVI and Singapore offshore jurisdictions.

Dicky holds a Master of Business Administration from Griffith University and Bachelor of Commerce from University of Southern Queensland in Australia. Dicky is a member of The Hong Kong Institute of CPAs; the Association of Chartered and Certified Accountants and The CPA Australia.

Aaron Mullins joined Asiaciti Trust in 2015 following 18 years of experience in International Fiduciary Services covering markets across Latin America, Middle East, Europe and Asia Pacific.

In his last position, prior to joining Asiaciti Trust, Aaron was the Head of Fiduciary Services for the Asia Pacific region for a major international bank.

Aaron is an Associate of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators, and a member of STEP.

Stella L. Cabalatungan is the Executive Vice President and Relationship Management Head of BDO Private Bank, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Banco De Oro Universal Bank.  She holds a degree in Business Major in Marketing Management at De La Salle University, Manila.  Her 33 years of banking experience began at Citibank, N.A. – Philippines as a Relationship Manager in 1985.  In 1991, she became first Filipino Business Development Manager of the International Personal Banking Center (IPB) in Citibank, Singapore, primarily managing and developing the Philippine offshore banking portfolio.  From 1994 to 2000, she managed and set-up various Personal Banking and Citigold Priority Centers in Manila. In 2000, she joined Banco Santander Phils, Inc., a Philippine subsidiary of Banco Santander Central Hispano, to manage the Fixed Income and Securities Distribution Group of Santander Investment Securities Philippines, Inc.  The Bank was acquired in 2003 by the Banco De Oro Universal Bank,and was renamed BDO Private Bank, Inc. to establish the very first Domestic Private Bank with a commercial bank license solely focused on Private Banking and Wealth Management in the country.  From then on, she assumed the role of Relationship Management Head to develop a new breed of domestic private bankers and to grow the private banking business competing head on with offshore private banks.  From a P6.8Bln portfolio base in 2003, the Bank has grown its Assets Under Management to P390Bln. BDO Private Bank holds the distinction of being the Best Private Bank and the Best Wealth Management House in the Philippines by many highly respected award-giving bodies such as Euromoney, Finance Asia, The Triple A Asset, Alpha Southeast, Global Finance and Asian Private Banker.

Joby is the Trust Officer of BDO Private Bank Wealth Advisory and Trust Group (BDO PB Trust).  He previously headed the Wealth Advisory Division of BDO PB Trust.  He joined BDO Private Bank, Inc. in 2004.  He was previously connected with Walden AB Ayala Management Co., Inc., a venture capital fund management company in partnership with Ayala Corporation, Walden International, Asian Development Bank and International Finance Corporation.  Joby also has extensive experience in credit and investment banking having worked in Far East Bank and Trust Co., FEB Investment Bank and Deutsche Bank (Manila and Hong Kong).   He graduated with a degree of MS Management at the Hult School of Management (formerly the Arthur D. Little School of Management) Cambridge, MA, USA and AB Economics, University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City.

Ador A. Abrogena, Executive Vice President and Head of the Trust and Investments Group, has over 30 years of experience in the trust and investments field.

A former Director and President of the Trust Officers Association of the Philippines (TOAP), he served for a maximum term of three years from 2002-2004.

He graduated from De la Salle University with a degree in BS Chemical Engineering and from University of Asia & the Pacific with a Masters in Business Economics. He took up a special course on Trust Operations and Portfolio Management from the Philippine Trust Institute and as its top graduate; he attended the National Graduate Trust Course in Evanston Illinois, USA, which was conducted by the American Bankers Association. He also took up several courses in foreign exchange and money market and executive development program here and abroad and holds a Masters in Business Economics.

He was formerly connected with PDCP as head of the Trust Investment Services and later Investment Banking. In BDO, he set up the Trust Department in 1988 and for a time, also headed Treasury.

Rafael Ayuste, Jr., is a Senior Vice President of BDO Universal Bank, Inc. and is currently responsible for the Personal Equity & Retirement Account (better known as PERA) business of the bank. He joined BDO in July 16, 2013 and was assigned as group head of the Wealth Advisory & Trust Group of BDO Private Bank, Inc. He spent more than thirty years in the banking industry with twenty four (24) years in the trust industry. Prior to joining BDOPB, he was the Trust Banking head of the Philippine National Bank and Security Bank and Deputy Group Head of Metrobank- Trust Banking Group. He also held various banking positions as head of Sales and Distribution of Banco Santander, Philippines and Citibank handling the Citibank Savings franchise. He is currently the President of the Trust Officers Association of the Philippines (TOAP). He has previously served as president of the association for three (3) terms.

Ms Paz is the Head, Legal, Compliance and Risk for the Asset Management and Trust Group / BPI Asset Management and Trust Corp at the Bank of the Philippine Islands. She is responsible to oversee legal and compliance of BPI Asset Management and Trust Corp.  This includes ensuring regulatory, legal and investments compliance of the business.  She is also responsible for addressing legal queries of the business.

As the Director, Elise Donovan promotes BVI’s financial services, represents the BVI in a diplomatic setting, upholds BVI’s voice with the region’s government authorities, strengthens economic and political cooperation regionally and internationally, and builds cultural and educational links in the Asia-Pacific.

She has a wealth of experience in international affairs, international political economies, diplomacy and public relations. She has worked in the BVI Government and the BVI Financial Services Commission. Previously, she was the Executive Director of the BVI International Finance Centre, where she was responsible for promoting and marketing the BVI financial services industry globally.

Elise holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Carleton University, Ottawa and Columbia University, New York

Christian leads iShares distribution for Wealth, Retail and Asset Managers across Asia ex Japan and is based in Hong Kong. He moved from BlackRock Zurich in 2014 where he led the institutional iShares distribution team covering pensions, insurance and asset managers.

Prior to BlackRock, Christian spent 4 years at JPMorgan Investment Bank as a cross asset derivatives marketer covering Swiss institutional clients out of London. Christian started his career at UBS Investment Bank in the Graduate Program at the Fixed Income department selling interest rate derivatives and structured credit.

Christian obtained a bachelor and masters degree from the University of St. Gallen (HSG) in Switzerland and spent a semester at the Marshall MBA school at USC, Los Angeles.

Rory Caines is a member of the iShares APAC Capital Markets team in Hong Kong. Rory is responsible for providing ETF execution services and product structure expertise, helping clients to understand and take advantage of ETF liquidity.

Rory is also responsible for Fixed Income ETF strategy and distribution in APAC, managing strategic relationships with banks and broker / dealer partners.

Rory joined BlackRock in London, before relocating to Asia in 2015. Rory earned a BA with honors from the University of Leeds.

Sander Laugs serves as head of New Markets at Bordier & Cie (Singapore) where he is tasked to expand the firm’s growth in the Asia Pacific region.

Prior to joining Bordier & Cie, Sander was director at Saxo Bank Group where he worked with independent asset managers, regional banks and family offices since 2007. 

In 2011, he held a brief stint at ADS Securities as a senior manager with the mandate to develop the Abu Dhabi firm’s institutional business in the Asia Pacific markets, before returning to Saxo Bank Group in Singapore in 2013. 

April Lynn Tan is the Vice President and Head of Research in COL Financial, the largest online stockbroker in the Philippines. As Head of Research, she handles a team of analysts who cover more than 60% of the total market capitalization of the Philippine Stock Exchange. She also regularly conducts market strategy presentations and appears in local business programs as a resource person for stock market matters.

April is also the President of the Chartered Financial Analyst Society of the Philippines (CFA Philippines), a position she has held since 2009.  Under her term as president, CFA Philippines won the “Global CFA Institute Research Challenge” twice and several Society Excellence Awards including the “Most Outstanding Society” for its size. The Society also became the country sponsor for the Global Investment Performance Standards (GIPS) together with the local “Fund Managers’ Association of the Philippines” and the “Trust Officers Association of the Philippines.”

She received her Bachelor of Science in Management Engineering degree in Ateneo de Manila University. April became a CFA Charterholder in 2000.

Nigel Rivers qualified as a solicitor of the Supreme Court of England and Wales in 1989. He practiced law in London, becoming partner of a law firm in 1991. Nigel specialised in corporate and commercial law, with a niche area of clients in sports and entertainment, advising athletes, sports personalities and investors in sports across the globe.

In 1998, Nigel left formal legal practice to join in the establishment of a new Formula One motor racing team, called British American Racing. He was involved in creating, implementing and monitoring the commercial and regulatory arrangements for the team, working directly with the Team Principal as part of the senior management of the sports franchise. The role involved Nigel in the contractual arrangements with drivers, sponsors and merchandise partners, as well as with the governing body of the sport.

After British American Racing was taken over by Honda Motor Company, Nigel established his own law practice to advise athletes and companies involved in sport, particularly in motor racing. He was also engaged in sports management with clients in Formula One, Formula 3, DTM, Le Mans Racing and NASCAR. Nigel advised clients on commercial investments (including acquisition of race circuit and team franchises in multiple countries), sponsorship, endorsement and merchandising arrangements.

In 2008, Nigel and his family moved to Asia and settled in Hong Kong. He joined TMF Group (then Equity Trust) in August 2008 as the head of Private Client Services in Hong Kong. At the start of 2010, Nigel was appointed Head of Private Client Services for the Asia region, and took on the additional role of Managing Director of Hong Kong office. From early 2014 until the end of March 2016, he was the Global Head of Private Client Services. TMF Group has grown to be the largest global independent trust and fiduciary service provider to private clients.

Nigel established Capital Solutions in Hong Kong and Singapore to deliver consultancy and advisory services to clients in relation to their wealth asset needs.

PATRICK D. CHENG, is the Executive Vice President, and Chief Finance Officer of China Banking Corporation. He also sits in the boards of the Bank’s subsidiaries - in China Bank Insurance Brokers, Inc. (CBC-IBI) as Chairman, and in China Bank Savings as Director, and in Manulife Chinabank Life Assurance Corporation (a bank affiliate) as Director. Patrick’s 30 years of banking has included significant senior management experience in a variety of roles including Retail Banking, Wealth Management, Treasury, Investments, Asset Management and Insurance. In previous roles, Patrick was the Trust Officer in both China Banking Corporation and Philippine Bank of Communications and was also responsible for Branch Banking and Wealth Management in both HSBC and Citibank in the Philippines In addition, from 2008 to 2013, he was the President and Chief Executive Officer of HSBC Savings Bank (Philippines), and from 2011 to 2012, he was a two-term President of the Chamber of Thrift Banks. A Certified Public Accountant placing 7th in the National Exams, Mr. Cheng graduated magna cum laude from the University of the Philippines with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration and Accountancy. He pursued his Masters in Management degree, with Distinction, from the Hult International Business School in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and completed the Trust Operations and Investment Management course, also with Distinction, from the Trust Institute of the Philippines. In 2010, he received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the Virata School of Business of the University of the Philippines – Diliman.

Wen Yen Choo is a specialist salesperson covering clients in South East Asia for Citi Private Client Solutions (PCS) within the Markets and Securities Services business. The PCS team is responsible for delivering Citi's distribution strategy for private banks, securities firms, asset managers and broad retail channels. Wen Yen covers clients in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand. 

Wen Yen joined PCS in February 2014, and assumed responsibility for the marketing and execution of multi-asset solutions for both institutional clients and financial intermediaries. Wen Yen works very closely with institutional clients across South East Asia to deliver a best-in-class product suite, including structured investments, derivatives, funds, rules-based strategies and access products. These are developed with a keen understanding of local regulations and investor needs.

Wen Yen joined Citi in 2012 in Singapore on Citi’s Management Associate programme. Prior to joining PCS, Wen Yen was part of the wealth management product team in Citi’s offshore consumer banking business based in Singapore, similarly serving clients in the Asia Pacific region.

Wen Yen graduated from the National University of Singapore with Double Honours Degrees in Economics and Business. She speaks fluent Mandarin and English, and conversational Korean and Bahasa Indonesian.

Dr. Ramos completed his undergraduate degree from the Ateneo de Manila (Honorable Mention). He finished his masters degrees at the Asian Institute of Management (Business Management) and the University of Asia and the Pacific (Business Economics). He completed his doctoral degree from De La Salle University. Mr. Ramos has 20 years of banking and finance experience working for local and foreign institutions. He has experience in the fields of corporate finance, product development, treasury trading, fund management, marketing and relationship management. Mr. Ramos is a CFA Charterholder, a CAIA Charterholder, a CIPM Certificant, Certified Securities Representative, a Registered Financial Consultant, and a Certified Treasury Professional. Mr. Ramos also completed the one year course on Trust Operations with distinction. Mr. Ramos has received a number of company and industry awards. He has also served on the boards of several industry associations. He has also served as President of the Trust Officers Association of the Philippines (TOAP) and the De La Salle University Doctoral Society. Rob is the current President of the CFA Society of the Philippines.

Sandeep Lalwani heads a number of strategic initiatives for Miles. He is a financial services professional with over 25 years of experience in the industry. He commenced his career with Arthur Andersen's fastest growing practice in India in the mid-1980s and has gone on to work on projects and advisory services with leading financial institutions like Deutsche Bank, Standard Chartered Bank,  H&R Block to name a few. Having worked in over 45 countries, Sandeep has contributed significantly in Miles foray into the Global Markets. Since 2006 Sandeep has been closely associated with the growing Asset and Investment Management Firms in India, Mauritius, UK and now Philippines. His expertise covers the technology and operational needs of these firms and has been a keen proponent of the use of technology solutions to provide customer with insights into adviser and portfolio performance.

Josefina (Joy) T Tuplano leads the Trust Banking Group as Trust Officer and Group Head with a manpower complement of 158 officers and staff, and managing close to PHP340 billion of client investment assets any in Trust products.

She has extensive experience and expertise in the field of Treasury and Investment Banking spanning over 27 years. She has formal training and broad exposure in foreign exchange, money and capital markets, derivatives, and risk management.

She has led the team in the Investment Distribution Division of Metrobank, as well as the team which was instrumental in maintaining Metrobank’s franchise as the best government securities eligible dealer in the primary market and second in the secondary market for several years.

She is an active member of financial associations and governance/policy committees, and has a wide network of retail and corporate clients. She is also a regular lecturer in training programmes.

Severino is responsible for overseeing the organic growth of Equiom in the Philippines through business development activities.

A Philippine lawyer, Severino provides legal support and advice to the client teams in Hong Kong in addition to co-ordinating and supporting the Group Business Development Director for strategic decisions related to achieving Equiom’s targets for growth and global expansion.

Severino joined Equiom Hong Kong in January 2015 following the acquisition of AFP Group.

He has over 30 years’ extensive international legal and business experience. He has held senior positions in a number of international companies covering a range of industries including finance, telecommunications and IT. He is well respected for his legal knowledge in the Asia-Pacific region amongst business leaders and high net worth individuals.

Severino is a graduate of De La Salle University and the Ateneo de Manila University.

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.

With more than 30 years of relevant industry experience, David spent the first 19 years of his professional life in banking and wealth management. Beginning in client-facing sales roles, he moved on to building, managing and developing high-performance teams of client-facing Wealth Managers in large financial services organisations in the UK. In 2001, he founded a consulting and training business, and established it in South East Asia. He successfully worked on over 200 assignments with clients across Asia, India, and The Middle East. In 2011, David joined Hubbis, becoming Head of Learning Solutions. David has directed and managed a range of projects around the region with many large international and Asian-based private banks, wealth management organisations and other financial services institutions. These have focused on the development of senior and middle-management skills, front-line sales staff skills and knowledge, as well as sales, sales management and client engagement process development. Clients with which David has created and delivered skills training include: AXA; BSI Bank; Bank of Singapore; Bank Julius Baer; Barclays Wealth; Coutts; Credit Suisse; EFG Bank; HSBC Private Bank; Prudential; The Royal Bank of Scotland; UBS; UOB; and Zurich International.

Starting in January 2016, Nina was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer of The Insular Life Assurance Company, Ltd. Since May 2015, Nina joined the Board of Trustees of The Insular Life Assurance Co., Ltd.

From August 2012 to March 2015, Nina held the position of President & Chief Executive Officer at the Philippine Bank of Communications (PBCOM), where she also sat as a Member of the Board of Directors. In this role, Nina was responsible for defining the Bank’s vision and strategy, as well as securing resources and building capabilities to ensure the successful implementation of such. From August 2009 to April 2012, Nina was the MD for Private Banking, Asia-Pacific, ANZ Group with geographic responsibility for North & North East Asia (Hong Kong, Taiwan, China) and South & South East Asia (Singapore, Indonesia, India, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand).

Formerly, Nina was at Citigroup for over 25-years in critical management positions: MD and Head of Corporate Center Compliance, New York; Country Business Manager, Global Consumer Group, Philippines; Regional Head, Audit and Risk, Asia-Pacific; and Regional Head, Quality and Re-engineering, Asia-Pacific.

In addition, Nina has also held other professional roles across risk management, credit and audit: Senior Advisor for Quattro Risk Management, a BPO serving global FIs; Board Member of the Market Integrity Board of the Philippine Stock Exchange; and Regional credit officer of Bank of Nova Scotia, Asia-Pacific. Nina is a Certified Public Accountant and has practiced in the Philippines.

Andrew has 22 years' industry experience, and joined JOHCM in April 2013.

Andrew has specific responsibility for developing business in Asia. Prior to joining JOHCM, Andrew worked at Merrill Lynch Bank (Suisse) S.A. in Singapore as the Regional Business Manager with responsibility for the Asia Pacific ex Japan region covering both Singapore and Hong Kong hubs. He previously worked at SHK Fund Management as Director, Business Development with responsibility for both Channels Distribution and Institutions in South East Asia. His other notable previous employers include Citibank, Coutts Bank, United Overseas Bank and Pioneer Investments where he held roles from back office to the front office. Andrew holds a Bsc (Economics) in Management Studies from the University of London (Singapore Institute of Management).

Tuck Meng Yee has over 20 years’ experience in the financial markets in Asia and Australia in derivatives, and in funds portfolio management, development, research and marketing with global investment banks (JPMorgan, UBS) and private banks (ABN Amro and Citibank) as well as funds services (Moore Management) and family office (JRT Partners) giving him a keen sense of what investments suit which types of investors, and the support they typically need. Most recently he was Investment Solutions Head for Allfunds in Asia (a leading funds platform) before returning to the family office JRT Partners. Tuck speaks English and Mandarin, and holds degrees in Accounting, Computer Science, and Finance (Masters) from the Australian National University and the University of New South Wales. JRT Partners is a Singapore based Family Office that invests across multiple asset classes including real estate, Alternatives (PE, HF) and mutual funds. On occasion, the family office works with other family offices in investing, as well as advising them on family office setup, management and administration, as well as investment due diligence services. He can be reached via [email protected]

Angie is a past president of the Trust Officers Association of the Philippines (TOAP) Board of Directors. She has served as a member of the TOAP board in various capacities since 2007. Before assuming her current role with KnowledgeLinks, Angie was FVP and Trust Officer of EastWest Banking Corporation from January 2015 to April 16, 2017. She previously occupied senior management positions with trust groups of major banks where she acquired extensive hands-on knowledge of all functional areas of Trust. Prior to joining the trust industry, Angie handled trading and research positions for both fixed income and equities market. She is currently a lecturer of the Trust Institute Foundation of the Philippines (TIFP) for investment and regulatory topics. Angie graduated BS Economics cum laude from the University of the Philippines School of Economics and finished MBA course requirements from the U.P. College of Business Administration. She completed the One-year Course on Trust Operations with distinction and has passed the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Level 2 examination.

With a background in many different aspects of wealth management, Steven Seow was appointed Mercer's head of wealth management in Asia in October 2013. Although based in Singapore, he travels extensively to work with the firm's financial institution client base across Asia. Prior to joining Mercer, Steven was director of banking and wealth management at Ernst & Young Advisory in Singapore for just over five years, offering private and retail banks in Asia business advisory services in investment suitability, product development and business operations controls. His has also worked in Citi Private Bank, IBM Business Consulting, PricewaterhouseCoopers Consulting and Odyssey Financial Technologies.

Justin Wells joined the team in July 2014 as investment director, helping to evaluate the impact of macroeconomic themes across the broader market environment. He also participates in discussions on investment process and strategy. Prior to joining OMGI, Justin worked as a strategist for the emerging market equities team within UBS Global Asset Management, Zurich. Justin was formerly based in Asia as an investment advisor to the then CIO of Shinsei Bank, Tokyo, focusing on emerging market investment opportunities throughout Asia and EMEA. He holds an LLB (Hons.) from the University of Durham and a BA (Hons.) from the Queen's University of Belfast.

Education

• Ateneo de Manila University Graduate School of Business (units 1977)Bachelor of Arts, Major in Economics, Ateneo de Manila University, 1973

Past positions held

• Chairman, Trust Committee, One Network Bank - Davao (Jan 2013 to Dec 2014)
• FVP and Group Head, Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) (Trust Banking Group, Treasury Group, Global Banking & Overseas Remittance Group) (2003 - 2013)
• SVP & Trust Officer / Trust Group Head, Philtrust Bank (2000 - 2002)
• VP and Trust Group Head, HSBC (Manila) (1995 - 2000)

Current directorships / other positions held

• Trust Institute Foundation of the Phils. (TIFP) - Executive Director, Education Committee and Board of Trustees member
• Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (FINEX) - Member
• Member, Society of Fellows - Institute of Corporate Directors (Center for Good Governance) Qualified Independent Director for any Corporation or Bank, PSE listed or non-listed
• Qualified Career Executive Service Officer (CESO) - for any Philippine Government Executive Position
• Career Service Executive Eligible (CSEE) - for any Philippine Government Executive Position

Mr. Luy serves as the Senior Executive Vice President of Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC). He is the Group Head for the Financial Advisory and Markets Group which is comprised of the Treasury Group and the Wealth Management Group at RCBC. He also serves as the CEO and President of RCBC Forex Brokers Corporation. Mr. Luy has 25 years of experience in banking and finance. He served in leadership roles as Managing Director across a variety of businesses with several international banks, based in New York, Singapore and Manila. His leadership experience includes Treasury products/Markets, Investment/Research, Corporate Finance and Advisory, Debt Capital Markets, Private Banking and Credit Risk Analysis. Mr. Luy has worked with a number of banks including JPMorgan, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Barclays Capital, HSBC, Julius Baer and Bank of Singapore. He graduated from the University of the Philippines with a Bachelors of Science degree in Business Administration (Magna Cum Laude) and was awarded as the “Most Outstanding Business Administration Student for the Class of 1990”. He earned his Masters in Management (MBA) degree from the J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. He is a CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst). During his stint with various global banks in the U.S., for several years, he was consistently awarded as Top Senior Analyst in his field by Institutional Investor Magazine during its annual survey of investors, including money management firms. He served as a member of the Singapore Institute of Directors, an association of independent directors in Singapore and served on the board of a Singapore-based hospitality and real estate entity.

Reynaldo G. Geronimo is a partner who is working with the Banking & Finance, and Taxation departments. His practice focuses on banking and litigation.

Gerry handles pre-mortem and post-mortem estate planning. He handles tax and estate litigation. He also represents banks in court cases and congressional investigations in assisting the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and Anti-Money Laundering Council craft proposals for laws and implementing regulations.

Gerry received his bachelor’s degree in History, cum laude, from the Ateneo de Manila University in 1964. He thereafter received his bachelor of laws degree, Second Honors, from the Ateneo de Manila University in 1968, and received his masters of law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law in 1973. He was admitted to the Philippine bar in 1969 and joined the firm in 1983.

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.

Mr. Narciso, Filipino, is currently the President of the Sun Life Foundation, Inc and Sun Life Financial Plans, Inc.  He is also the Chief Agency Distribution Officer of Sun Life of Canada (Philippines), Inc.  

His career with Sun Life began when he joined as a career agent in 1986. He progressed through various roles in Sales Training, Sales Support and Marketing and became Marketing Director in 1999. He then moved to Sales in 2001, and headed Metro Manila new business offices of Cluster 2 until 2009, when he was appointed Chief Agency Distribution Officer. 

Under his leadership, Agency Distribution has gone from strength to strength, moving to the number one position in new business in 2009 and in Total Premiums in 2011. Sun Life maintains its number one position up to the present time. 

He has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from the Ateneo de Manila University and a Master of Science in Industrial Economics from the Center for Research and Communications (now University of Asia and the Pacific). He is a Fellow of the Life Management Institute and a proud member of the Sun Life Quarter Century Club as well as the Philippine Leadership Team.

Accountable for the formulation and implementation of portfolio strategies across the life insurance assets of both Sun Life of Canada (Philippines), Inc. and Sun Life Grepa Financial, Inc. as well as the Sun Life Prosperity Mutual Funds under Sun Life Asset Management Company, Inc. (SLAMC) totaling about US$7.0bn in assets under management. He has over 23 years of solid and distinguished portfolio management experience gained from stints in various investment and financial service companies. Graduated from the Ateneo De Manila University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Management.
Experience and Outstanding Accomplishments
1. Equities Portfolio Manager /Vice President – BPI Asset Management 2011 - 2012
2. Equities Portfolio Manager /Vice President – ING Investment Management Inc. 2010 - 2011
3. General Manager – Philequity Management Inc. 2009 - 2010
4. Head for Fixed Income Desk/ Assistant Vice President – Citicorp Financial Services and Insurance Brokerage 2002 - 2009
5. Equities Trader – Abacus Securities Corporation 1996 - 2002

Steve Knabl has over 20 years of extensive experience in Alternative Fund Management, Private Wealth Management and Financial Services. He has worked with all major asset classes, including private & public equity, real estate, and cryptocurrency. Having led Swiss-Asia's fund platform for over 15 years, he plays a pivotal role conceptualizing and constructing Swiss-Asia's Fund projects from the ground up. His aptitude for translating intricate business visions into actionable initiatives has been a steadfast contributor to the success of both Swiss-Asia and its platform Funds. Steve's forward-thinking approach leverages technology to enhance operational efficiency and stay ahead in today’s competitive financial services landscape. His commitment to integrity, excellence, and innovation underscores Swiss-Asia's dedication to delivering top-tier services to platform funds and wealth managers. Steve’s breadth of industry knowledge garners many invitations to speak at industry panels and formal educational forums. Steve is a frequent lecturer at the Singapore Management University (SMU) MBA Class and guest speaker at many International Wealth Management Conferences and Forums throughout Asia. Steve is also registered as a Professional Director with the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority and the Singapore Fund Directors Association. Through the Swiss-Asia Group, he is a Registered Representative with the Monetary Authority of Singapore, a Registered Officer with the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong, and a Registered Principal with the National Futures Association (US).

As the President and CEO of Unicapital Securities, Inc., Leonardo provides management depth given his wealth of experience in investment banking, which started in 1973. In 1989, he co-founded an investment house, Keppel IVI Investments, Inc. in partnership with the Keppel Group of Singapore. Given his practice of 40 years in investment banking, Leonardo has been involved in major deals, ranging from issue management and underwriting of IPOS, financial advisory role in mergers and acquisitions, corporate restructuring, and project finance. He graduated from the Ateneo de Manila University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and completed a graduate certificate course under the Strategic Business Economics Program for Senior Executives at the University of Asia and the Pacific. Leonardo is a former Independent Director of ABN AMRO Bank (Phils.) Inc. and is a fellow of the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD).

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.

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.

Tuck Meng Yee has over 20 years’ experience in the financial markets in Asia and Australia in derivatives, and in funds portfolio management, development, research and marketing with global investment banks (JPMorgan, UBS) and private banks (ABN Amro and Citibank) as well as funds services (Moore Management) and family office (JRT Partners) giving him a keen sense of what investments suit which types of investors, and the support they typically need. Most recently he was Investment Solutions Head for Allfunds in Asia (a leading funds platform) before returning to the family office JRT Partners. Tuck speaks English and Mandarin, and holds degrees in Accounting, Computer Science, and Finance (Masters) from the Australian National University and the University of New South Wales. JRT Partners is a Singapore based Family Office that invests across multiple asset classes including real estate, Alternatives (PE, HF) and mutual funds. On occasion, the family office works with other family offices in investing, as well as advising them on family office setup, management and administration, as well as investment due diligence services. He can be reached via [email protected]

Christian leads iShares distribution for Wealth, Retail and Asset Managers across Asia ex Japan and is based in Hong Kong. He moved from BlackRock Zurich in 2014 where he led the institutional iShares distribution team covering pensions, insurance and asset managers.

Prior to BlackRock, Christian spent 4 years at JPMorgan Investment Bank as a cross asset derivatives marketer covering Swiss institutional clients out of London. Christian started his career at UBS Investment Bank in the Graduate Program at the Fixed Income department selling interest rate derivatives and structured credit.

Christian obtained a bachelor and masters degree from the University of St. Gallen (HSG) in Switzerland and spent a semester at the Marshall MBA school at USC, Los Angeles.

Rafael Ayuste, Jr., is a Senior Vice President of BDO Universal Bank, Inc. and is currently responsible for the Personal Equity & Retirement Account (better known as PERA) business of the bank. He joined BDO in July 16, 2013 and was assigned as group head of the Wealth Advisory & Trust Group of BDO Private Bank, Inc. He spent more than thirty years in the banking industry with twenty four (24) years in the trust industry. Prior to joining BDOPB, he was the Trust Banking head of the Philippine National Bank and Security Bank and Deputy Group Head of Metrobank- Trust Banking Group. He also held various banking positions as head of Sales and Distribution of Banco Santander, Philippines and Citibank handling the Citibank Savings franchise. He is currently the President of the Trust Officers Association of the Philippines (TOAP). He has previously served as president of the association for three (3) terms.

Steve Knabl has over 20 years of extensive experience in Alternative Fund Management, Private Wealth Management and Financial Services. He has worked with all major asset classes, including private & public equity, real estate, and cryptocurrency. Having led Swiss-Asia's fund platform for over 15 years, he plays a pivotal role conceptualizing and constructing Swiss-Asia's Fund projects from the ground up. His aptitude for translating intricate business visions into actionable initiatives has been a steadfast contributor to the success of both Swiss-Asia and its platform Funds. Steve's forward-thinking approach leverages technology to enhance operational efficiency and stay ahead in today’s competitive financial services landscape. His commitment to integrity, excellence, and innovation underscores Swiss-Asia's dedication to delivering top-tier services to platform funds and wealth managers. Steve’s breadth of industry knowledge garners many invitations to speak at industry panels and formal educational forums. Steve is a frequent lecturer at the Singapore Management University (SMU) MBA Class and guest speaker at many International Wealth Management Conferences and Forums throughout Asia. Steve is also registered as a Professional Director with the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority and the Singapore Fund Directors Association. Through the Swiss-Asia Group, he is a Registered Representative with the Monetary Authority of Singapore, a Registered Officer with the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong, and a Registered Principal with the National Futures Association (US).