This year's awards dinner was FinanceAsia's largest, with 400 of Asia's elite turning up to pick up their awards. On the evening we also announced that SingTel's CFO, Chua Sock Koong was our Capital Markets Person of the Year, picking up the mantle from last year's winner, Frank Sixt of Hutchison.
Fine evening dress abounded, but nowhere more so than on the robust frame of UBS Warburg supremo, Mark 'the Admiral' Dowie. Some people may have wondered at his turn of the 18th century British naval uniform, which is a replica of Admiral Nelson's own, as worn at the Battle of Trafalgar. We should point out, however, that unlike Dowie, Nelson didn't have to change into his uniform in the carpark at Exchange Square.
The uniform was made for Dowie's 40th birthday, at a cost that could have fitted out a small fleet in Nelson's day, and was worn by Dowie - a man of honour - after a humorous wager he made to FinanceAsia that if UBSW was made investment bank of the year, he would wear it on the night. Dowie's uniform, with its 6000 yards of gold braid, is so authentic that a number of museums have asked to borrow it. No one can deny it is eyecatching, though one might suspect, a little hot.
If Tatler had been there it would have pointed out that other eye catching and hot attendees included Merrill Lynch's highly radiant ECM counsel, Wendy Stimpson and BNP Paribas Peregrine's ECM goddess, Alice Wong.
Winning the hearts and minds of such ladies with his witty after dinner speech was former CSFB vice-chairman, Alan Smith who gave his own awards. These included an award for Best Fiction of the year, where he shortlisted:
Harry Potter - "Two hours of entertainment about the magical powers of a schoolboy"
Lord of the Rings - "A three hour epic of magic and myth"
and Enron's annual report - "A twelve month story involving real magic, where losses are turned into reportable profits, and debts magically disappear at will."
Smith's highly amusing speech drew laughs, and was followed by our annual trivia quiz which either reveals the most intelligent people in the room or the ones that are best at using a mobile phone. This year's winner was State Street, beating JPMorgan in a tie-break and taking home a case of champagne.
Our congratulations to all the winners of the awards.
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