Loh Long Hsiang, Standard Chartered’s deputy head of China origination and client coverage, is the latest senior banker to switch to a fast-growing Chinese TMT company, joining peer-to-peer lender Dianrong.com as its chief operating officer.
The news was revealed in an internal Dianrong memo seen by FinanceAsia and confirmed by Dianrong’s spokesman, who said the StanChart veteran started work in the first week of the year.
Loh joined the British bank in 1997 as a relationship manager in Singapore. During his 18 years there, he held senior positions including global head of markets & institutions risk management and chief credit officer of global markets.
Singapore-born Loh will be responsible for the daily operations and management of Dianrong, according to the memo. He will be responsible for helping the company improve its systems of operation and establish more effective management and incentive mechanisms, the memo says.
Loh becomes the latest senior banker to leave the industry to pursue opportunities elsewhere at a time when the prospects for banking remain subdued in light of greater regulatory scrutiny since the global financial crisis of 2008. Tight salary caps to prevent overspending have hit banking salaries, especially for senior personnel.
Fast-growing Chinese companies, hungry for talent with exposure to international markets to help them expand, have emerged as a popular destination for senior bankers.
In August last year, Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s head of Asia technology, Winston Cheng, joined Chinese technology and entertainment giant LeTV Holdings as senior vice-president and head of corporate finance and development.
Three months later, Shenzhen-based S.F. Express hired Chong Leong from Morgan Stanley, where he had been vice-chairman of the Asia-Pacific investment banking division.
Dianrong established its relationship with StanChart in September last year when it raised $207 million from a Series C round of funding. The bank was one of the investors in the consortium alongside China Fintech Fund, Bohai Leasing, and Hong Kong-based Max Giant Capital.
Besides Loh, Dianrong has hired another former StanChart banker, Feng Ruibin, as chief credit officer, according to the memo. Feng had served as head of small- and medium-sized enterprises and new ventures for StanChart. Immediately before joining Dianrong, Feng was deputy chief risk officer at Ping An Puhui Finance.
Zhou Lili, HSBC’s deputy director of legal and compliance, has also joined Dianrong as board secretary and general counsel. The appointments were confirmed by Dianrong's spokesman.
