ABN Amro expands structuring and advisory capabilities in Asia

Dutch bank ABN Amro has significantly bolstered its financial institutions and public sector group in Asia with the addition of 10 new hires, as it looks to extend its structuring and advisory capabilities across the region.

The expanded team will target financial institutions, central banks and institutional investors across the region, offering structured products on both the asset and liability sides. One of its main focuses, however, is to provide risk management advisory services to Asian institutions in the run-up to Basel II, scheduled for implementation at the end of 2006.

“Asian banks want to know what the global banks are doing to prepare for Basel II, rather than necessarily having consultants tell them what to do,” said Mark Stadler, newly appointed head of the group, and formerly ABN Amro’s head of corporate finance financial institutions team in Asia. “Basel II will have profound effects on the banking industry, and Asian institutions want other banks from Europe or the US to discuss best practice with them.”

The Dutch bank has already started on an operational risk management advisory project for Indonesia’s Bank Mandiri, which began late last year, and it expects more mandates from Asian institutions following the publication of the Basel Committee’s third consultative paper, due to be released in May.

“We’ve seen quite a bit of interest already,” added Sam Zavatti, Hong Kong-based global head of financial institutions and public sector at ABN Amro and a member of the bank’s wholesale clients executive committee. “But time is running out until the scheduled implementation of Basel II, so we expect to see more interest going forward.”

Other than Stadler, the bank’s new hires include David Ng, who joins from Morgan Stanley as head of Greater China banks and public sector; Aki Kinjo, formerly with IBM Consulting’s financial institutions advisory service, who has been appointed head of Japan banks and public sector; and David Khoo, who joins from JP Morgan Chase and will cover Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.