Investment firm for ultra-rich opens office in Hong Kong

Hong Kong

INVESTMENT firm Cambridge Associates is opening a Hong Kong office, ramping up its focus on Asia amid a surge in wealth in the region.

The Boston-based company that serves clients such as endowments, family offices and pension funds already has offices in Singapore and Beijing. It hired Edwina Ho in February as senior director of business development for Asia and relocated its head of the global private client practice, Mary Pang, to Singapore from San Francisco, according to a statement on Monday.

"Asia has long been a key market for Cambridge Associates and we are very excited to be expanding in Hong Kong as the next stage in our mission to provide strong investment performance and excellent service to clients across the region," said Aaron Costello, the firm's regional head of Asia, in the statement.

Wealth growth has surged in the region in recent years and the number of people with more than US$30 million is forecast to outpace the rest of the world through 2025, according to a Knight Frank report last month. The richest Asia-Pacific billionaires are worth a combined US$2.5 trillion, almost triple the amount at the end of 2016, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

Cambridge Associates, which has more than US$38 billion under management, serves over 230 wealthy individuals and families globally. The company's owners include the Hall family behind Hallmark greeting cards, the Rothschilds and the Boels of Belgian investment firm Sofina.

The world's ultra-rich have been flocking to the region to establish their wealth management shops. Google co-founder Sergey Brin set up a branch of his family office in Singapore, while Bridgewater Associates' Ray Dalio said in November it would open one there. Vacuum-cleaner mogul James Dyson is another who has his firm in the city-state. BLOOMBERG