JPMorgan doubles private bankers in Singapore team to top 50

[SINGAPORE] JPMorgan Chase has doubled the number of Singapore-based bankers who serve wealthy clients in the region, signalling its ambition to capture more business from the Asian financial hub.

The Wall Street bank’s relationship manager headcount for South-east Asia and Australia has risen to more than 50, roughly twice the number from the start of last year, according to sources familiar with the matter.

Most hires were for the Indonesian market, with about 20 staff from fewer than 10 last year, said the sources, who asked not to be identified as the recruitment is not public.

The New York-based firm has been hiring from top competitors, which are all vying for more revenue from their wealth businesses in Asia, the sources said.

Indonesia, South-east Asia’s largest economy, is a major market for private banks in Singapore, where billionaires often keep their offshore accounts.

JPMorgan has made significant hires over the past five years and will continue to invest in talent to sustain its growth momentum, said Paul Thompson, head of Singapore and South-east Asia for the private bank.

The firm achieved record revenue and assets under management in South-east Asia and across Asia last year, and continues to see the same expansion trajectory this year, Thompson said in response to queries.

In Singapore, Thompson leads the team covering the city-state, South-east Asia and Australia, while there is a separate Greater China team. The US bank also offers private banking services in Hong Kong and Australia in Asia.

JPMorgan’s private banking client assets soared 41 per cent last year to US$300 billion, overtaking DBS as the third-largest private bank in Asia excluding China, according to Asian Private Banker’s rankings. UBS and HSBC are tops in the region.

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Across Asia, excluding onshore China, JPMorgan’s headcount of relationship managers rose to 380 last year, an increase of 50 people from a year ago, according to the industry publication.

Minimum assets for JPMorgan private banking clients are now US$10 million, down from US$25 million a few years back, the sources said.

Singapore’s biggest banks have also benefited from rising inflows from rich clients. The city-state’s largest lender DBS, together with domestic rivals OCBC and UOB, saw fees related to services for the wealthy soar during the first three months of the year. BLOOMBERG