Back then, Reuben Lai, Senior Managing Director of Grab Financial Group told the media, “In Southeast Asia, there is a lack of access to affordable wealth management products and retirement planning solutions for most people. As we face an increasingly volatile and uncertain economic environment, it is imperative for Southeast Asians to acquire the tools and knowledge to protect their future by sustainably building wealth for themselves and their families. The launch of GrabInvest brings us a step closer to democratising access to affordable financial solutions that will help them achieve the financial stability they need well into their retirement years.”

Prior to setting up Bento, Chandrima was a Managing Director in the Bank of Singapore. It is also reported that Huey Tyng, the head of Grab’s payments business will step down from her role along with Das.

The Singapore-based ride-hailing and food delivery giant is also mulling listing its shares in the US. The pricing, size and timing of the deal are yet to be determined. It is estimated that Grab’s IPO could be the largest market debut ever made by a Southeast Asian company on a foreign exchange.

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The funding round for StashAway was led by Australian venture capital firm Square Peg.

Other investors that participated in the funding round include Hubert Burda Media’s growth capital arm Burda Principal Investments and existing investor Eight Roads Ventures.

With regard to the funding, Michele Ferrario, co-founder and chief executive of StashAway told the media, “This new round of financing further strengthens StashAway’s balance sheet position, bringing our paid-up capital to SGD 50.7 million. This latest round will enable us to accelerate product development to both broaden and deepen our wealth management offering for our clients in Singapore and Malaysia, as well as support new market entry.”

StashAway offers investment and cash management portfolios for both retail and accredited investors. Its technology provides automated and personalized portfolio management, targeting different levels of risk.

Established in 2016, the startup currently operates in Singapore and Malaysia and has acquired licenses from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Securities Commission of Malaysia.

Michele Ferrario further revealed that the startup plans to use the new funds to speed up product development and enhance the capabilities of its platform.

He also said that the startup is planning to launch in new markets in the near future, however, did not disclose any location as of yet.

The investment in StashAway is Square Peg’s fifth investment in a Singaporean company. Previously it has invested in property portal PropertyGuru, financial technology company FinAccel, restaurant booking marketplace Chope and telehealth service Doctor Anywhere.

Square Peg partner Tushar Roy will join StashAway’s board as part of the funding deal.

The post Digital wealth management platform StashAway secures $16 mn funding appeared first on International Finance.

Recently, Citibank also launched a new flagship wealth management center in a prime location in Singapore. Spanning over 30,000 square feet, the wealth management center will occupy four floors including two floors for 400 relationship managers and specialists as well as two floors for client meetings and events.

Reportedly, Citibank also plans to develop another wealth management center in Singapore as a part of its plan to double its wealth management business in the country.

Citibank’s chief executive Brendan Carney told the media, “We think there’s another gear that we can shift into and go from double-digit growth to really strong double-digit growth.”

He further revealed that the bank’s assets grew by 11 percent last year and its wealth management business recorded around 19 percent growth in assets.

Despite the Covid-19 pandemic which has affected businesses all across the globe, Citibank expects its client base and assets at its retail unit in Southeast Asian markets to grow by 10 percent respectively.

Fabio Fontainha, Citibank’s head of retail banking for the Asia-Pacific said that the bank plans to expand its customer base across 12 markets, underpinned by online growth. She added that Citibank gets about a third of new clients online and that trend is expected to grow.

According to PricewaterhouseCoopers, the wealth management sector in Asia is expected to grow to $29.6 trillion in the next nine years.

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Through the acquisition of Bento Invest, Grab will venture into the wealth management business in Singapore.

According to reports, Bento Invest will be rebranded as Grab Invest and the new products will be available in Singapore during the first half of the year. The new wealth management products will be available in the Grab app.

The size of the deal was not disclosed.

Chandrima Das, who currently serves as the chief executive at Bento Invest, will continue with her role after it rebrands to Grab Invest. She has 23 years of experience in wealth and asset management across Asia and the UK. She also served as the managing director at Bank of Singapore and chief executive at ING Investment Management Singapore.

She told the media, “The Bento and Grab Financial teams share a common vision to democratise investments for our customers irrespective of their wallet size. I am grateful for the opportunity to be part of the Grab ecosystem as we work together to make wealth management solutions to serve the financial needs of millions of Southeast Asians.”

Recently, Grab Financial started offering loans and credit lines to small and medium-sized businesses in Singapore.

Businesses can apply online and borrow up to S$100,000 with interest rates as low as 0.7 percent per month. Grab Financial does not demand any security deposits and the loan sizes are calculated based on the financial status of the businesses.

Last year, Grab launched SME lending as well as micro-insurance for drivers in Singapore.

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Speaking to Bloomberg on this development, Vincent Chui, Morgan Stanley’s Asia Pacific head of wealth management, said that the bank’s constant growth and increase in its markets is reason enough for them to go to the next level this year.

He indicated that the rise in the number of employees for the positions of relationship managers could result in a minimum of 50 to 60 more customer service, risk and product executives joining the organisation.

The US investment banking Morgan Stanley declared that it touched a milestone in profit last year, owing to its wealth management business that contributes to over 50 percent of its earnings.

When asked on how the turmoil that has engulfed Hong Kong has affected the bank’s operations in the region, he answered in the negative. But, he admitted that the clients are now more concerned on how and where to deposit their assets, whether it is the US, Europe, Hong Kong or Singapore.

However, he maintained that creation of wealth, especially in the Tier-II cities of China and other regions of the Asian continent, has been robust and went on to say that there are abundant options in the ultra-high net worth domain.

Speaking on the matter of buyouts, Chui clearly stated that the bank while exploring all avenues will not compete in its quest for growth. This is in line with Morgan Stanley’s moves as against its competitor UBS that plans to cut down 500 jobs worldwide in order to focus exclusively on Asia and Europe.

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The firm will use the funds to expand its business in the Asia Pacific region and also the Middle East. Kristal.AI is also expected to upgrade its back-end-technology with the secured funds.

The funding round for Kristal.AI was led by Chiratae Ventures and the Desai Family Office. According to media reports, many high-net-worth individuals also took part in the funding round.

Asheesh Chanda, CEO, and founder at Kristal.AI told the media, “The new-gen investor needs strategies personalised for their individual risk profile, lifestyle, and expectations. Traditional banks offer such hyper-personalisation only to high-profile clients, but we are bringing it to the everyman. Kristal.AI’s strategies are made for the new-age global investor.”

The firm uses AI and offers curated portfolios to its clients which includes exchange-traded assets like stocks, bonds, options, futures, and currencies. Also, reportedly, it has an in-house Investment Committee (IC) which includes experts with years of experience in fields such as finance and trading.

Currently, Kristal.AI has over 10,000 users actively using its platform and the firm oversees assets worth more than $100 million.

Kristal.AI was founded by entrepreneurs Asheesh Chanda and Vineeth Narasimhan in 2016. So far, the firm has raised around $11 million in separate funding rounds.

In 2019, Kristal.AI raised around $1.85 million in a funding round led by IDG Ventures. The firm also plans to launch new products in the Indian market, after securing a licence from the Securities and Exchange Board of India.

The firm also has an office in Hong Kong.

The post Singapore wealthtech Kristal.AI secures funding for expansion appeared first on International Finance.

The new JP Morgan trust company in Singapore will be led by Ethan Chue who has been serving as executive director of JP Morgan since October 2018. Ethan Chue has the experience of working in fields such as trust, tax and wealth and also estate planning.

The Singapore team led by Ethan will include four trust officers and a trust compliance officer. It will be supported by JP Morgan’s units in Asia, the US, and Europe as well as its trust company in the Bahamas.

With regard to the launch of JP Morgan’s trust company in Singapore, Ethan Chue told the media that, “By having a presence in Asia, we can service our clients and their families in the region more efficiently, and be more proactive in working with them to anticipate changes and plan for succession to future generations.”

He added, “It is important to address business and family needs in conversation, to get the structures right, and to work with a professional in order to get unbiased views.”

CEO at JPMorgan’s private bank in Asia, Kam Shing Kwang believes many of JP Morgan’s clients will move their trusts from the Bahamas to Singapore. During a press conference, she pointed out that many of JPMorgan’s European clients are also eager to book their trusts in Singapore.

Singapore is one of the world’s leading financial and wealth centres and demand for trust companies in the country is on the rise.

By the end of 2017, there were 814 billionaires in Asia, which is 38 percent of the global billionaire count.

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