UBS sees wealth business boost as China reopens, looks to hire
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Mr Edmund Koh, Asia-Pacific president at UBS Group, sees real growth in China starting in the second quarter.
PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
BEIJING – UBS Group predicts an increase in business for the bank’s key wealth division in Asia this year after a difficult period last year and is looking to add talent, said its Asia-Pacific president.
“I think our wealth management will power away this year because of what is happening in China – opening up and creating a more positive outlook for the whole market with investors,” said Mr Edmund Koh in an interview with Bloomberg TV.
The nation’s reopening bodes well for the region, as well as globally, and he sees real growth in China starting in the second quarter.
UBS, the largest private bank in Asia, managed about US$412 billion (S$549 billion) in assets for wealthy clients in the region as at the third quarter.
The Swiss bank saw inflows into its wealth management business last year from clients fleeing Credit Suisse Group.
It reported a US$237 million profit for the regional wealth business in the third quarter.
While China is currently experiencing a surge in Covid-19 infections, this has not affected the bank’s operations in the country, where it employs 1,400 people, Mr Koh said.
China has been impacted by its “common prosperity” drive and strict Covid-19 mobility restrictions, he said, but the country will be “stronger this time round” getting out of it.
After a difficult year for wealth in the region, the bank is looking to add talent. “I am here to hire,” he said. BLOOMBERG
