Nasdaq-listed SEI opens Singapore office to grow Asian private-market business

[SINGAPORE] When SEI’s largest client, a top-five global alternative asset manager, said that a Singapore office would support its business in Asia, SEI took note.

Eighteen months later, the Nasdaq-listed financial technology services provider opened its first Singapore office in IOI Central Boulevard Towers, as part of efforts to serve global asset manager clients in Asia and pursue growth in the region.

In an exclusive interview with The Business Times, Sanjay Sharma, CEO of SEI International and global head of SEI’s private banking business, said that SEI plans to start with the fund administration business and asset management distribution first in Singapore.

The company will use these two business lines to assess demand before deciding which other investment management services, including asset management, to introduce.

A later phase could involve artificial intelligence adoption and broader business transformation, said Sharma.

Its fund management business currently serves 48 of the top asset managers worldwide and 325 public and private asset manager clients.

Connall McGuckian, managing director and head of Singapore, noted: “The key priority for us is to develop an experienced team locally to service the global prime relationships, keep and build them in Asia using the experience we have globally through the SEI operating model.”

Sharma added that Singapore also serves as a hub for the business to expand in the region.

“If you look at Malaysia, Indonesia or Thailand, they have insurance companies (that) need asset management services,” he said. “That could be (an) opportunity for us in the global markets.”

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Reinventing operations in private assets

SEI’s move comes as private markets grow more complex.

Michele Deely, head of investment manager services for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, said that the sector has grown exponentially over the last decade and now stands at US$15 trillion globally across all asset classes.

Phil McCabe, executive vice-president at SEI and head of its investment manager services division, identified two main trends shaping the industry: the reinvention of back and middle offices, and the growth of private markets.

In the last two years, a few large alternative asset managers have approached SEI to transform their operating models, he said.

“The clients have, in the last few years, entered many new jurisdictions, they have new asset types, product types, legacy systems, platforms and data,” noted McCabe. “Their data is fragmented and spread across the world.”

That fragmentation has created pain points for clients investing in private markets, he added, and it is a very high-touch space, where SEI has to keep pace with clients as their complexity grows.

Why Singapore?

SEI’s launch comes amid strong growth in Singapore’s asset management industry.

Assets under management (AUM) at Singapore-based firms grew 10 per cent from a year earlier to reach S$6.7 trillion in 2025.

The sector is also globally orientated, where Singapore-based asset managers source more than three-fifths of their AUM from outside Singapore, and 88 per cent of AUM is invested globally.

At the media event, SEI said the talent pool and regulatory environment were the key reasons for choosing the Republic as a regional hub.

It recognises the importance of a local team that is more aware of regulations and of clients’ needs on the ground, and plans to expand hiring as business needs grow.

Looking ahead, SEI expects to broaden its regional capabilities by introducing locally relevant products and services across enterprise asset management, technology, operations and professional services.

“Singapore’s prominence as a global financial centre, combined with the continued growth of the region’s asset management industry, makes it an ideal location to expand our presence,” said Sharma.

“Clients are increasingly looking for scalable, connected solutions that help them operate more efficiently, navigate complexity, and pursue growth across markets and jurisdictions.”