Clariden Leu hires new Asia head

Swiss private bank Clariden Leu has hired Jimmy Lee as its new Asia head based in Singapore. He will take over from Stefan Hausherr, who is head of operations for Asia as well as branch manager for Singapore and who has been doubling up as Asia head on an interim basis since November 2008.

Lee has more than 20 years of experience within the finance industry, including stints at several other Swiss private banks, and is well suited to drive and implement Clariden Leu's growth strategy in Asia, according to a written endorsement by Hausherr. He joins from Deutsche Bank in Singapore where he has spent the past four-and-a-half years as head of private wealth management for Southeast Asia and South Asia, in charge of a team of more than 150 employees.

His team at Clariden Leu will be significantly smaller -- about 50 people -- but the Swiss private bank is in growth mode. A representative for the bank says the firm has managed to attract new clients and gain net new assets in the private banking business during the current financial crisis, which would be in line with the development seen at other independent private banks, such as Julius Baer, as some investors have chosen to move at least some of their assets away from troubled banks like UBS.

As of the end of 2008, Clariden Leu had SFr94 billion ($79 billion) of assets under management globally. The firm does not break down its numbers by region.

Prior to joining Deutsche Bank, Lee spent more than six years as regional market director of South Asia, Australasia and international wealth management at Credit Suisse Private Banking in Singapore and before that he was head of private banking at Coutts Bank Schweiz, also in Singapore. His earlier experience includes private banking jobs at J.P. Morgan and Swiss Bank Corporation (which was later incorporated into UBS).

He will report to Erich Pfister, Clariden Leu's head Middle East and Asia.