CEO Of JP Morgan's Private Wealth Management Arm In Asia Relocates To Singapore

Tara Loader Wilkinson

16 May 2012

Peter Flavel, the chief executive of private wealth management at JP Morgan in Asia, has relocated from Hong Kong to Singapore as the US lender seeks to bolster its private banking division in the city-state.

"Hong Kong and Singapore are equally important and we are growing both centres. And we would like to strengthen our management presence in Singapore,” Flavel told this publication’s sister website, WealthBriefingAsia.

A source close to the situation said: "The Singapore franchise has grown dramatically. From effectively a start up with just a handful of private wealth staff in early 2011, the number of client-facing high net worth advisors has doubled in Singapore over the last 12 months." Flavel will still spend a large amount of time in Hong Kong, said a spokesperson.

Flavel initially moved to Singapore from Melbourne in 2002 to join Standard Chartered. When he joined JP Morgan in 2011, he moved to Hong Kong where the private bank's headquarters were then based.

Andrew Cohen, CEO of JP Morgan Private Bank in Hong Kong, a division which serves the ultra high net worth segment of net worth above $30 million, will remain where he is.

Changes in Asia

Meanwhile, the US bank, which last week confirmed a $2 billion trading loss in its London credit derivatives office, has been relocating other key staff from Hong Kong to Singapore, and from the US to Asia.

Adam Seward, executive director and head of internal human resources for asset and wealth management in Asia, was also recently relocated. Douglas Wurth, JP Morgan's international private banking CEO, relocated to Hong Kong from the US in 2010.

JP Morgan has traditionally focused on private clients with a net worth of at least $30 million, as opposed to some of its rivals like UBS and Credit Suisse, which are happy to take on clients with smaller pockets. However, the bank more recently has been looking to tap clients lower down the scale, from $10 million and up, in a bid to tap entrepreneurial wealth in the fast-growth region.

JP Morgan private bank has assets under management of around $750 billion globally, but does not disclose its Asia-Pacific assets, nor does it break down relationship manager numbers in regional divisions.