Former UBS debt banker Guy Wylie has resurfaced at Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) as its new head of primary markets for Asia-Pacific.
The role is a newly created one for the bank and was described in the release as one that “brings the financial institutions origination and the debt capital markets (DCM) and syndicate teams together”.
Wylie is returning to an old shop, having previously worked at RBS’s London loan team back in 2005.
“I am really excited to return to RBS, the opportunity to help drive the origination function across the DCM, loan markets, primary derivatives and FIG areas is a great opportunity,” said Wylie in an phone interview. “RBS has a core global focus on these areas and there is a groundswell of internal support to assist in becoming one of the key market players in Asia-Pacific.”
Wylie joined RBS on Wednesday and is based in Hong Kong. He reports to Pierre Ferland, Asia-Pacific head of markets, and Madan Menon, Asia-Pacific head of international banking. Wylie will also chair the Asia-Pacific credit markets management committee, which provides oversight and coordination of the debt capital markets, loan and bond syndicate, and the credit trading, sales, research and mortgage businesses.
John Wade, head of Asia-Pacific debt capital markets and syndicate, and Kenneth Tung, head of the Asia-Pacific financial institutions group, will both report to Wylie. However, he does not have any direct reporting from the credit sales and trading team.
Wylie left UBS, where he was head of debt capital markets for Asia, in June last year, a few months before the Swiss bank announced a retreat from fixed-income markets. At the time of his departure, one source described the move not to replace him as a decision to do away with a layer of management.
In contrast, his joining RBS is seen as adding another layer of management and, given that he has worked at the bank in the past, he is expected to be able to navigate the bank better than a complete outsider.
“Wylie is an ex-RBS guy who has worked in London and knows the guys there, and should be able to mingle through the system,” said one source.
In the past, the financial institutions group at RBS primarily focused on M&A work, but RBS last year sold off its M&A and equity capital markets business to Malaysian bank CIMB. Since then, the financial institutions group has focused on debt coverage.
“Financial institutions now focus on managing clients for DCM opportunities, so having a reporting line into debt is going to be useful, because the financial institutions job is now focused on DCM origination,” the source added.
Wylie has 20 years of experience in banking and corporate restructuring, including working at UBS in Hong Kong and London for the past six years. He also previously spent several years with J.P. Morgan and Arthur Andersen in Australia.
