Barclays
Barclays, the UK-based, globally-focused banking group, has named Jean-Christophe Gerard to head up the investments operations of its Private Bank & Overseas Services division. The role is a newly-created one, and the appointment is effective today.
Gerard, (pictured), comes to Barclays from HSBC, where he had been for more than 20 years, most recently as head of product. His other roles at HSBC included having served as head of its private bank EMEA, and chief investment officer for its Switzerland business.
In his new role with Barclays, Gerard will be responsible for developing and delivering investment propositions for high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth individuals, family office as well corporate and fiduciary clients, Barclays said.
This would include advisory and discretionary investment services and more complex, customised structures, the bank added. He will be based in London.
Karen Frank, chief executive of private banking and overseas services, said Gerard’s appointment was consistent with Barclay International’s strategy going forward, which has been reported to involve plans to grow the private banking business.
Encik Danial Mah bin Abdullah has been named director-general of the Labuan Financial Services Authority, as of today, succeeding Datuk Ahmad Hizzad bin Baharuddin.
Labuan Financial Services Authority
Danial Mah Abdullah has been named director-general of the Labuan Financial Services Authority, as of today, succeeding Datuk Ahmad Hizzad bin Baharuddin.
Mah, who has been deputy director-general since 2007, will serve a three-year term in the role, the Labuan FSA said in a statement.
In addition to his role as deputy director general of the Labuan FSA, Mah, pictured, is also chairman of its Credit Risk, Investment and Risk Management Committee; its Asset Management Committee; and its Talent Management Committee. He is also the Secretary to the Authority of the Labuan FSA.
Mah first joined the Labuan FSA in 1997. His qualifications include being a Chartered Accountant registered with the Malaysia Institute of Accountants, and also an associate member of the Institute of Bankers Malaysia. He also holds a Bachelor of Accounting from the University of Malaya and an MBA from Manchester Business School in the UK.
Labuan is a group of islands off the coast of Malaysia – of which it is a part – which specialises in financial services.
It was first designated an “international financial centre” by Malaysia in 1990, and since then has sometimes been described as Kuala Lumpur’s answer to the City of London’s Isle of Man. In 2008, the Labuan International Business & Financial Centre was established, overseen by the Labuan FSA.
In the statement announcing Mah’s appointment, the Labuan FSA thanked Baharuddin for his contributions during his time with the organisation.
Bedell Cristin
Bedell Cristin, the cross-border law firm, has named Lee Osborne a senior associate in its Guernsey office. In this role, Osborne will advise, as he has previously, on a range of corporate, commercial and banking matters, including investment funds and private equity, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, cross border transactions and corporate re-structuring, the law firm said today.
A member of the British Virgin Islands Bar Association, Lee qualified originally as an English lawyer, and spent time working at Shoosmiths in London, before moving to the BVI in 2008. In addition to advising on Guernsey law, Lee also practises BVI law, and has previously advised on Cayman Islands law, with specific emphasis on open-ended investment funds and closed-ended private equity structures.
ASB Bank, subsidiary of Commonwealth Bank of Australia
Barbara Chapman, the chief executive of Commonwealth Bank of Australia’s New Zealand subsidiary, ASB Bank, has announced that she will retire from the role, which she has held since April 2011, next Easter. In a statement, ASB said it has begun recruiting for her replacement.
Chapman joined ASB in 1994, and prior to becoming CEO, held a number of other key roles within the Commonwealth Bank Group of companies, beginning with a stint as chief manager of marketing at ASB. During her time as CEO the bank’s annual profit grew to more than A$1bn (US$782m, £589m) from $A568mn in 2011, ASB Chairman Gavin Walker noted.
ASB began in 1847 in Auckland – where it is still headquartered – when it was known as the Auckland Savings Bank. It was acquired by Commonwealth Bank of Australia in two purchases, the first in 1989 and the second in 2000.
