In the wake of the global financial crisis, US and European banks decided they could no longer afford to subsidise their small but growing Asian operations.
Some were also disappointed with the paltry returns from helping Asian companies who refused to pay much for advice.
A drop in deal-making after 2010 exacerbated the crackdown investment banking revenues from IPOs, debt issues and MA in the region fell to $5.2 billion in 2013, the third consecutive year-on-year decline according to data provider Dealogic.
The best managers managed to squeeze costs and prop up revenues by improving processes as well as trimming...