ESG – its Growing Impact and Reach in Asia

Mr. Shah leads the ESG practice at GMO and is responsible for building GMO’s ESG capability across investment product areas and asset classes. He was a part of the CFA Institute’s ESG Working Group for FY20 which developed a proposal for the ESG Disclosure Standards for Investment Products. He was subsequently selected to join their ESG Verification Subcommittee as well. Prior to joining GMO in 2017, he led a global team of ESG analysts at Sustainalytics. Previously, he was an ESG Ratings associate at MSCI and, as a senior climate change consultant with Ernst & Young, supported many projects under the Clean Development Mechanism defined in the Kyoto Protocol. During 2015 and 2016, Mr. Shah was voted #1 “research firm analyst who understands the challenges & opportunities facing companies” in the global Independent Research in Responsible Investment (IRRI) Survey. He earned his bachelor of engineering from University of Mumbai and holds the Fundamentals of Sustainability Accounting (FSA) credential issued by SASB, the Sustainability and Climate Risk (SCR) certification issues by GARP and is also a CFA charterholder.

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]

Drawing upon his extensive leadership experience and industry knowledge, Arjan is responsible for the entire products and services offering in Asia and overlooks the regional investment strategy. Arjan started his financial career with Hollandsche Bank Unie (HBU), serving Private, Corporate and Institutional clients within a dealing room environment, and subsequently became Head of Treasury & Special Products Private Clients in the Netherlands. He has over 14 years of experience with ABN AMRO Private Banking, of which more than 7 years were spent in Asia. In early 2006, he relocated to Singapore to take up the position of Regional Head of Treasury & Special Products for Private Banking in Asia with ABN AMRO. With his strong understanding of the needs of Asian clients, Arjan moved to Hong Kong in April 2010 and was appointed Head of Private Banking for North Asia. Following this, he was appointed Head of North Asia at ANZ Private Bank before being appointed Head of Integration for ANZ Retail & Private Wealth Asia in April 2016. Arjan was appointed Head of Markets & Investment Solutions Asia at Indosuez Wealth Management in February 2017. Arjan graduated with a Master of Science in Business Economics from Nyenrode University, the Netherlands.

Jean-Louis Nakamura is Chief investment officer, Asia-Pacific, and head of Hong Kong office for Lombard Odier group. Jean-Louis joined Lombard Odier in March 2008 to head the executive board of the Paris office. In late 2008, he was transferred to Lombard Odier’s head office in Geneva to become Head of the Quantitative & Overlay Management Team. He was appointed Deputy Global CIO of LOIM in June 2012 and CIO, Asia Pacific in January 2014. Prior to joining Lombard Odier, Jean-Louis was CEO of the French Civil Service Pension Fund (ERAFP), having spent five years as CIO of the French Pensions Reserve Fund (FRR), where he was in charge of strategy, tactical allocation and the selection of managers for a portfolio valued at EUR34 billion. Previously, he was Head of International Forecasting and Macro Analysis at the Ministry of Economy & Finance, France from 2001-2003. He also served as a financial expert covering euro-related issues and the banking and insurance sectors for the European Council from 1999-2001. Jean-Louis began his career in 1995 as an economist, specialising in macroeconomics and the banking industry at the French Ministry of Finance. He graduated from France’s Ecole Nationale d’Administration in 1995 and from the Institut d’Etudes Politiques in 1991.

Adeline is a Partner of the firm and the Wealth Business Leader for Hong Kong. Her team services clients in Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, South Korea and Philippines. She joined Mercer in 2014 to lead the investment consulting /advisory segment of Mercer’s Investments business. Adeline’s move to Hong Kong follows 12 years of consulting experience with Watson Wyatt (now Willis Towers Watson). She began her career advising large UK pension schemes on the funding and risk management of their liabilities. In 2007, she was seconded to the Shanghai office of the same firm, gaining experience in benefits and investment consulting in the region. In 2008, she returned to the UK to concentrate on investment consulting, specializing in the areas of long-term investment strategy, asset-liability studies, dynamic de-risking, performance monitoring, and portfolio construction matters. Aside from client responsibilities, Adeline was also involved in the development of system modelling tools. Her most recent role before joining Mercer was primarily focused on delivering whole-fund investment solutions to clients that have chosen to delegate a greater part of their investment processes. Adeline is a graduate of the Business School at the University of Warwick and is a Fellow of the UK Institute of Actuaries.

Ms. Ng joined Ping An in June 2018 as senior portfolio manager. Prior to that, she spent her past 10 years with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) as Senior Manager of Fixed Income Division, participated in managing 70% of the HK Exchange Fund assets investing in highly diversified global capital markets. Besides extensive experience in multi-assets strategies, Ms. Ng’s last role in HKMA was to lead the team which manages Emerging Market Credit and China onshore fixed income portfolios, and facilitate tactical and strategic asset allocation decisions process at senior management level. Ms. Ng also helped HKMA set up their onshore RMB bond portfolio from scratch in 2011 and expanded it into a multi-billions USD worth of investment. Prior to joining the HKMA, Ms. Ng worked on multiple asset classes investment portfolios during her employment with JPMorgan Chase and HSBC Asset Management. Ms. Ng graduated from City University of Hong Kong and received a Bachelor degree of Business Administration.

Yash Mishra is a professional financial planner and has been involved with the financial services industry since 1994. Before joining Taurus Wealth Advisors, she was a senior vice president with the Private Client Service for ipac Singapore, specialising in assisting both local and expatriate professionals develop their investment and lifestyle planning strategies. Before moving into the banking and financial services industry, Yash was a network solutions specialist at AT&T’s Global Communications Group, and in 1994 she received an MBA from the Birla Institute of Technology & Science (BITS). Yash’s wealth management career began with Fortis and BNP Paribas in India. This early experience in such a demanding environment provided her with a strong understanding of investment markets and vehicles, enabling her to develop strong wealth-accumulation strategies for her clients. Yash’s dedication is demonstrated by her excellent track-record and her strong pool of both local and international clients (including clients from the USA, India, the UK, Israel, Australia and Hungary). She is a champion for financial education and works alongside INSEAD University in raising financial awareness. Yash conducts a variety of workshops and seminars on related topics such as financial independence, successful investing and retirement planning. She contributes to various editorials and has often been quoted in publications such as the Asia Wall Street Journal and ‘Today’. She is an active member of UNIFEM and the Financial Women’s Association. Yash is fluent in four languages, and enjoys oil painting and hiking.

Drawing upon his extensive leadership experience and industry knowledge, Arjan is responsible for the entire products and services offering in Asia and overlooks the regional investment strategy. Arjan started his financial career with Hollandsche Bank Unie (HBU), serving Private, Corporate and Institutional clients within a dealing room environment, and subsequently became Head of Treasury & Special Products Private Clients in the Netherlands. He has over 14 years of experience with ABN AMRO Private Banking, of which more than 7 years were spent in Asia. In early 2006, he relocated to Singapore to take up the position of Regional Head of Treasury & Special Products for Private Banking in Asia with ABN AMRO. With his strong understanding of the needs of Asian clients, Arjan moved to Hong Kong in April 2010 and was appointed Head of Private Banking for North Asia. Following this, he was appointed Head of North Asia at ANZ Private Bank before being appointed Head of Integration for ANZ Retail & Private Wealth Asia in April 2016. Arjan was appointed Head of Markets & Investment Solutions Asia at Indosuez Wealth Management in February 2017. Arjan graduated with a Master of Science in Business Economics from Nyenrode University, the Netherlands.

Adeline is a Partner of the firm and the Wealth Business Leader for Hong Kong. Her team services clients in Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, South Korea and Philippines. She joined Mercer in 2014 to lead the investment consulting /advisory segment of Mercer’s Investments business. Adeline’s move to Hong Kong follows 12 years of consulting experience with Watson Wyatt (now Willis Towers Watson). She began her career advising large UK pension schemes on the funding and risk management of their liabilities. In 2007, she was seconded to the Shanghai office of the same firm, gaining experience in benefits and investment consulting in the region. In 2008, she returned to the UK to concentrate on investment consulting, specializing in the areas of long-term investment strategy, asset-liability studies, dynamic de-risking, performance monitoring, and portfolio construction matters. Aside from client responsibilities, Adeline was also involved in the development of system modelling tools. Her most recent role before joining Mercer was primarily focused on delivering whole-fund investment solutions to clients that have chosen to delegate a greater part of their investment processes. Adeline is a graduate of the Business School at the University of Warwick and is a Fellow of the UK Institute of Actuaries.

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]