Credit Suisse has hired Deborah Lee to join its growing Asia-Pacific prime brokerage business, where she will focus on attracting global investors for the bank's regional hedge fund client base, the Swiss bank said yesterday.
Lee has 10 years of experience in the industry, most recently as an executive director in the capital introduction division of Goldman Sachs's prime brokerage business in Hong Kong, which she joined in October 2007, and prior to that at the Channel Capital Group in New York.
Her appointment "reflects Credit Suisse's continued investment in prime services in Asia-Pacific and the importance of prime services to the bank's client-focused strategy", said a spokesperson. The bank identifies this division as one of its key client businesses in its equities department, along with cash equities, electronic trading and flow, and corporate equity derivatives.
Lee joined Credit Suisse earlier this month as a director within the capital services team in Hong Kong, reporting to Benjamin Happ who heads up the capital services division. Lee is also tasked with helping non-Asian hedge funds raise cash from local investors who have broader investment criteria.
Credit Suisse plans to increase its headcount in the prime services business by 15%-20% this year, according to the spokesperson. The bank made no cuts in the division in 2009, and in fact made two key hires: Happ in July and his boss, Matt Pecot, in May. Pecot is head of prime services Asia-Pacific.
Commenting on the bank's intention to continue expanding the business, Pecot said yesterday that, "people see that the macro story out here in Asia is quite differentiated from what is happening in the US and Europe and they are trying to take advantage of that by putting talent on the ground here".
"The wind is still definitely behind us," he added.
