While global markets remain mired in uncertainty, HSBC is expanding its equities and prime services teams in Asia with the recent hire of nine senior executives, it said in a statement yesterday.
The new staff include five additions to the Asia-Pacific equities team and four to the prime services team, who all joined the bank during the past few months, a spokesman said.
“These new appointments demonstrate HSBC’s determination to continue building its equities franchise,” Rakesh Patel, head of equity sales and sales trading for Asia-Pacific, said in the statement. “The bank’s willingness to invest in this business under difficult market conditions reinforces the importance we attach to enhancing our offering.”
Asian markets such as Hong Kong and India are core to many banks’ strategies given the weakness in developed markets, while the development of prime services supports the growth of the bank’s equities franchise, it noted.
Tim Franks was appointed as head of hedge fund sales, Hong Kong, based in the city, and reports to Brad Schwartz, who is head of equity sales, Hong Kong. Franks was formerly a managing director and head of hedge fund sales at Bank of China International.
Jeffrey Tan joined as a director in equity sales, while Eric Ang and Russell Jacobsen were appointed as directors in equity sales trading. They are all based in Hong Kong. Edward Yen joined the bank as a director in Taiwan equity sales, based in Taipei.
HSBC continues to build and invest in its prime services platform, helping the Asia-Pacific team to grow to 40 people since 2010, the bank said in the statement.
The bank’s prime services includes features such as equity financing and securities lending, and cross-asset margining and risk management, according to its website.
The new appointments for this unit are: Jean-Paul Linschoten, who was hired as a director in prime services sales, based in Hong Kong; David Streatfield, who joined as a director in equity finance delta one sales, based in Hong Kong; and Adrian Harrison, who was hired as a director in prime services sales, also based in Hong Kong. Ted Langworthy joined as a director in equity finance delta one sales, based in New York. He was appointed to support Americas-based clients who are active in international equity markets.
The latest moves come as HSBC has been also expanding its global research unit in the Asia-Pacific region. In June, HSBC announced that it had hired five analysts in Hong Kong. They include Thomas Hilboldt, who joined as regional head of oil, gas and petrochemical research, Asia-Pacific, and Jenny Cosgrove, who came on board as the regional head of utilities and alternative energy research, Asia-Pacific.
Since 2009, HSBC has increased the size of its Asia-dedicated cash equities team by 20% — not all Asia-based, but including individuals based in the US and Europe with an Asia-equities focus, according to the spokesman. This goes hand in hand with the 20% increase in Asian research during the same period, he noted.
