SG
Private banking jobs in China
18 July 2007
Mainland China's super-rich are HSBC Private Banking's latest target, but private bankers hoping for a China job shouldn't lick their chopsticks yet.
The growth of mainland China as a home to super-rich individuals is not in doubt. This year's World Wealth Report from Merrill Lynch and Cap Gemini suggested the number of high-net-worth individuals in China grew by 7.8% last year. With the country's savings rate running at more than 50% there's a huge amount of spare cash about.
But although HSBC has followed Citibank (China) and Bank of China in applying for regulatory approval – these last two names have already begun doing business – recruiters say China's wealthy would rather park their money elsewhere.
Chia Tek Yew, financial services partner at Heidrick & Struggles in Singapore, says high-net-worth money flows out of China instead of sticking around to be managed there. He adds: "It's a high probability that by investing offshore you are going to be less worried about issues such as taxation, liquidity and the possibility of regulatory investigation."
The trend is for client relationship managers to be located in Hong Kong and Singapore and to fly in to meet key customers on an ad hoc basis.
Philip Eisenbeiss at headhunter Executive Access in Hong Kong also puts a downer on the job prospects for experienced Singapore-based private bankers hoping to capitalise on China's growth: "You can bring people over from Hong Kong or other markets if it is not a client facing role, but on the ground there is no short cut to […] training up talent."
Add the fact that private bankers in mainland China aren't paid that well, and the opportunities don't look so exciting after all.
