Barings to set up South-east Asia hub in Singapore
Genevieve Cua
Singapore
INVESTMENT management firm Barings is laying the groundwork for an office in Singapore to serve as its hub for South-east Asia investment activities.
The office is expected to manage around US$1 billion in Asian equity strategies. It will be headed by SooHai Lim, managing director and head of Asia equities ex-China.
The firm is understood to be in the process of securing a licence to operate. The office is expected to open next year and will be staffed by seven, including four investment professionals for a start.
Barings manages around US$354 billion in assets globally. It is a subsidiary of MassMutual. Investors here will recall the collapse of Barings Bank in 1995, and it was subsequently bought over by the ING Group. In 2005, MassMutual acquired Baring Asset Management. In 2016, MassMutual merged four entities into a diversified group called Barings. These were Baring Asset Management, Babson Capital Management, Wood Creek Capital Management and Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers.
On the new Singapore office, Barings chairman and chief executive Mike Freno said: "Asia-Pacific is an important growth engine for Barings. A full presence in Singapore will serve as an important gateway to additional South-east Asia investment opportunities to help us better serve our existing clients and build new client relationships."
Mr Lim said: "The office will provide us with a more direct access to Singapore banking institutions and institutional investors, as well as highly skilled local talent. Importantly it enhances our investment research by putting us closer to the companies that we invest in across our funds."
Barings has a number of funds here available for accredited investors.
Duncan Robertson, Barings head of Asia-Pacific and head of global business development, said: "Having one of our key regional investment teams located in Singapore will enhance our level of interaction and engagement with the local investor community. This will provide a strong foundation for continued growth in the region."
Mr Lim holds a fairly positive outlook for risk assets next year, thanks to supportive monetary and fiscal policies. "We are quite constructive on the markets generally next year... We should see a very strong earnings recovery, albeit from a low base in South-east Asia.
"Liquidity in markets should continue to be supportive. If you drill down and look at individual companies, there are many interesting companies that have been able to deliver strong earnings... We expect that to continue because they are exposed to the right themes."
