9th Funds Selection Nexus 2022 Singapore
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Agenda
| 08:30 – 08:55 | Registration |
| 08:55 – 09:00 | Welcome Remarks |
| 09:00 – 09:45 |
Plenary Selector Panel Discussion | The quest for resilience and diversification in Asian portfolios
Geopolitical tensions, along with rising inflation and interest rates – and the market volatility that has emerged as a result – have driven wealth managers in Asia Pacific to seek solutions that help their clients’ portfolios sustain returns, hedge volatility, and source innovative ways to offer greater overall diversification. While many house views and fund creators have turned conservative in the near-term, there has been no shortage of varied and productive investment opportunities, ranging from strategies around semi-liquid private markets, capital-protected products, value-focused funds (rather than growth), short-duration bonds, income-generating assets like REITS and infrastructure, to thematic strategies around sustainability, biotech, digitalisation and healthcare. Meanwhile, the prevailing mindset has turned toward recommending high conviction asset allocation and investment-grade bonds. As we near the fourth quarter, how have some of Asia’s preeminent fund selectors taken stock of the year that has been and, importantly, where are their priorities and what are their expectations for Q4 and beyond? How are their banks helping clients to exploit the extraordinary price action in certain parts of the global markets, while also seeking to achieve greater geographic and overall diversification? Where are clients’ mindsets at such a unique juncture – divest, stay invested, or increase exposure given current market prices? Where do the opportunities lie across asset classes? Are there any product gaps on selectors’ wishlists? Speakers:  Donald RiceHead, Fund Specialists Asia, Bank Julius Baer  Jansen PheeHead of Funds Investment Solutions, Asia Pacific; Head of Global Investment Management, China, UBS Global Wealth Management  John NgHead of Funds Business, DBS Private Bank Moderator:
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| 09:50 – 12:05 |
Breakout Sessions Workshop 1 | Short duration for the long term (hosted by Aviva Investors) Join Josh Panton, head of credit investment specialists at Aviva Investors as he shares how a long-term allocation to short duration global high yield can offer attractive and efficient income for clients. Josh will also examine the current diversification benefits of short duration global high yield in asset allocation. Workshop host:
Workshop 2 | Diversified domestic opportunities across Asia ex-Japan (hosted by Baillie Gifford) Despite its recent volatility, equity remains an important asset class, especially for investors expecting a higher long-term return in an inflationary and rising interest rate environment. At a time when some investors appear to be questioning their Asia ex-Japan allocation, we are as bullish as we have been for many years. Fiscally, Asia appears much healthier than in previous downturns and relative to developed markets. The understandable concerns over inflation and energy security find their beneficiaries in many Asian economies. The quality of the companies we can access in Asia ex-Japan is better than it has ever been and the valuation we’re being asked to pay for these companies is as low in both an absolute and relative sense as it has been for many, many years. Workshop host:
Workshop 3 | Finding winners and losers: Delivering two sources of alpha in technology stock investing (hosted by Columbia Threadneedle Investments) Join Art Condron, MD at Seligman Investments (a part of Columbia Threadneedle Investments) as he explains how their long/short sector-specialist strategy, Seligman Tech Spectrum, delivers two sources of alpha by seeking out winners and losers within the technology, media and telecoms industries. The strategy has built a formidable track record since 2000, trading through a range of market environments with its fundamental, bottom-up approach to stock selection. Workshop host:
Workshop 4 | Why compromise quality for yield? (hosted by PineBridge Investments) When most risk assets have been in free-fall over the past year and a half, the Asia investment grade (IG) debt markets demonstrated remarkable resilience showing investors that the asset class could provide stable income and uncorrelated alpha, acting as a durable core allocation across market cycles. IG bonds are relatively more insulated from market volatility compared with other asset classes, offering a more stable investment solution with attractive risk-adjusted returns. With the challenges ahead including elevated inflation, rising rates and China’s economic slowdown, an active investment approach focusing on flexibility and selectivity will remain key. Join this session where PineBridge’s Omar Slim, Managing Director, Fixed Income Portfolio Manager, shares how a highly nuanced approach to credit selection can harness advantages of this asset class more effectively, starting with a robust credit research process that analyses bonds from both the bottom up and top down to build a portfolio likely to meet the volatility and return challenges of shifting markets. Workshop host:
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| 12:10 – 12:25 |
APB Intelligence Briefing
Asian Private Banker‘s Intelligence Briefing is a year to date review of the strategies and priorities of Asia’s top private banks, curated and aggregated using our unrivalled access to the key players and institutions driving Asia’s private banking sector. The 15 minute briefing will provide a broad overview of fund inflows and outflows across Singapore and Hong Kong year to date, specific asset allocation breakdowns and tactical calls based on editorial insight from APAC private bank CIOs, and where the priorities for lie amongst the different banks in this region, including specific new mandate launches, changes in client demographics, and regional AUM performance. Speaker:
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| 12:25 – 12:55 |
Closing Fireside Chat | Timing the opportunity to capture China’s future growth
General sentiment amongst Asian Private Banker readers is that the region’s investors continue to view China as offering significant opportunities for growth, despite the current headwinds. Being selective though is critical to managing the volatility resulting from slowing consumption trends, a drag from the property sector, and weak business confidence and labour markets. So what are the sectors that wealth managers see as offering the greatest opportunities when faced with current market conditions? Where lies the attractive valuations that can deliver sustained, predictable growth? The digital economy and internet sector? EV supply chain and renewable energy operators? Small- and mid-cap Chinese equities who are less impacted by regulatory crackdowns on sectors like technology? And when it comes to portfolio construction, what recommendations are wealth managers offering their clients when it comes to weighting Chinese equities vs. fixed income? Are there opportunities in the Chinese alternatives sector that clients are seeking? As the Chinese economy looks to benefit from increased stimulus measures and comparatively lower inflation than other key global markets in the second half of 2022, join our closing session to explore where the greatest opportunities lie for the months and years ahead. Speakers:  Edouard HoepffnerHead of Investment Services Asia, Union Bancaire Privée  Gareth NicholsonCIO & Head of Discretionary Portfolio Management, International Wealth Management, Nomura Moderator:
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| 12:55 | Networking Lunch |
Josh Panton, Head of Credit Investment Specialists, Aviva Investors 
Andrew Keiller, Investment Specialist, Baillie Gifford
Art Condron, Managing Director, Hedge Fund Marketing and Investor Relations, Seligman Investments (a part of Columbia Threadneedle Investments)
Omar Slim, Managing Director, Fixed Income Portfolio Manager, PineBridge InvestmentsSpeakers
Sponsors
Conversation Partners
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Investment Specialist, Baillie Gifford
Andrew joined Baillie Gifford in 2011 and is currently an investment specialist for Asia ex-Japan equities. He is a CFA Charterholder, and graduated BSc (Hons) in Mathematics and Business Studies from The University of Edinburgh.
Head, Fund Specialists Asia, Bank Julius Baer
Donald Rice is head, fund specialists Asia at Bank Julius Baer. Based in Singapore, he is responsible for mutual funds, alternative investments and ETFs advisory, and leads his team to deliver best in class solutions for clients across the region.
Prior to joining Bank Julius Baer in 2019, Donald held a variety of positions in Credit Suisse over the last 23 years. Most recently, he was the deputy head of fund solutions, as well as the head of alternative fund solutions Asia Pacific, based in Singapore. His responsibilities covered sourcing, selection and distribution of mutual funds, ETFs, hedge fund advisory, private equity, infrastructure and managed real estate capabilities. His teams in Hong Kong and Singapore specialised in customised solutions for ultra high net worth clients, family offices and institutions.
Donald graduated from the American Graduate School for International Management (Thunderbird) with a Master’s degree focusing on international securities investment, financial engineering and multinational corporate finance.
Head of Funds Investment Solutions, Asia Pacific; Head of Global Investment Management, China, UBS Global Wealth Management
Jansen Phee is the head of funds investment solutions for Asia Pacific at UBS Global Wealth Management. He is also the head of global investment management for China. In his first role, Jansen is responsible for UBS GWM’s fund offerings and fund agenda in the region. He is based in Singapore and chairs UBS’s Asia Pacific funds committee and is also a member of its global funds committee. In his other role, Jansen is responsible for UBS GWM’s funds, alternatives, and wealth planning (life insurance and family trust) businesses in onshore China. Jansen previously also headed UBS’s discretionary fixed income and equity teams and was the head of the Singapore and Malaysia Investment Specialist team where he helped advise and structure investment solutions for clients. He has over 18 years of experience in investment advisory, discretionary management and research roles.
Prior to rejoining UBS, he was with BNP Paribas WM as the head of equities within the discretionary portfolio management team and before that a senior investment counsellor. Jansen also spent time at Mercer Consulting as an investment consultant and at Citigroup Private Bank as an investment portfolio counsellor.
Jansen graduated from the London School of Economics with Honors in Econometrics and Mathematical Economics.
Head of Funds Business, DBS Private Bank
John has 30 years’ experience in the banking and finance industry. The first 10 years of his career were spent in corporate banking and project finance. He then moved to the asset management business as an investment analyst and portfolio manager, and has spent the last 14 years in private banking.
John joined DBS in 2017, setting up the Portfolio Counseling Team and headed the managed advisory service. In 2020, he took over responsibility for the funds and private equity business.
John holds an MBA from the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business, and has a bachelor’s degree from Curtin University, Australia.
Managing Director, Fixed Income Portfolio Manager, PineBridge Investments
Mr. Slim is a portfolio manager within the Asian Fixed Income team – responsible for managing funds invested in global and Asian credit, rates and FX markets – and a board member of PineBridge Investments Singapore Limited.
Prior to joining PineBridge in 2013, Mr. Slim was a senior portfolio manager within Asian fixed income at State Street Global Advisors (SSGA) in Singapore. He started there as a credit analyst for global active fixed income in Canada, before being promoted to senior portfolio manager to manage a team investing in the North American credit markets. In his most recent Singapore-based SSGA role, Mr. Slim led the development of the Asian credit investment process in Asia, helped build up their credit coverage and managed local and hard currency Asian fixed income portfolios. He also participated in a number of government sponsored policy initiatives to develop and enhance the Asian bond markets. Prior to SSGA, Mr. Slim was a research analyst at BNP Paribas Corporate & Investment Banking.
Mr. Slim holds a Master of Science degree in finance from Boston College’s Carroll Graduate School of Management. He also attended the Investment Decisions and Behavioral Finance Executive Education program at the Harvard Kennedy School. Mr. Slim is a CFA Charterholder.
Senior Consultant – South Asia Editor, Asian Private Banker
Audrey Raj is the South Asia editor of Asian Private Banker, driving our coverage of private wealth management in the region as well as spearheading our new ESG 2.0 initiative. She was previously Asia editor overseeing Citywire’s private banking and asset management editorial coverage across the region. Audrey has about 15 years of reporting experience in Singapore and Australia, covering finance, business and commodities. She graduated with a journalism master’s degree from the University of Queensland.
Managing Director, Hedge Fund Marketing and Investor Relations, Seligman Investments (a part of Columbia Threadneedle Investments)
Art Condron is managing director, hedge fund marketing and investor relations for Seligman Investments (a part of Columbia Threadneedle Investments). He joined the firm with the acquisition of J. & W. Seligman & Co. Incorporated in 2008; Art joined Seligman in 1983. Currently, Art is responsible for hedge fund marketing and client service. Prior to his work on the hedge funds, Art was director of wealth management services. Art received his B.S. in Business Management from St. John’s University.
Head of Investment Services Asia, Union Bancaire Privée
Based in Singapore, Edouard heads investment services in Asia, with teams based in Singapore and Hong Kong. He leads a team of specialists in equities, fixed Income, funds, alternatives, derivatives, advisory and discretionary portfolio management.
Edouard has worked for over 20 years in investment management, investment banking and wealth management. Prior to UBP, he was a managing director at Daiwa Capital Markets based in Hong Kong, where he was responsible for setting up the derivative structuring team in Asia ex-Japan across all asset classes. He has also worked for Merrill Lynch, Deutsche Bank and SG Asset Management in Hong Kong, Singapore and Paris.
Edouard graduated from the HEC School of Management majoring in Finance.
Head of Credit Investment Specialists, Aviva Investors
Josh leads the credit investment specialist team. His team works closely with credit portfolio managers and analysts to articulate their investment process, portfolio positioning and investment performance with clients and consultants globally.
Prior to leading the team, Josh’s main focus was as an investment director on our high yield and multi-sector credit strategies. Josh joined the investment industry working on the RFP team at Aviva Investors, before moving onto the investment specialist team. Prior to joining the investment industry, he worked as a client relationship manager for First Advantage.
Josh holds a master’s degree in banking and finance, a bachelor’s degree in business and management, and also holds the IMC.
CIO & Head of Discretionary Portfolio Management, International Wealth Management, Nomura
Gareth Nicholson joined Nomura in July 2021 as chief investment officer and head of discretionary portfolio management for international wealth management. He is based in Singapore.
Gareth works closely with Nomura’s global markets and investment banking businesses to expand the firm’s product offerings and spearhead a streamlined, solutions-driven coverage effort for high-net-worth clients, external asset managers and family offices. With a strong institutional investment background, he creates and manages DPM strategies for fixed income, equity and multi-asset portfolios, while providing risk management support.
Gareth has over 16 years of experience in financial markets. Prior to Nomura, he was head of fixed income DPM at Bank of Singapore, where he was also a member of its investment committee. Before that, he was with Aberdeen Standard Investments for almost 10 years as a fixed income trader and an Asian credit portfolio manager.
Gareth holds a BSc in financial mathematics from the University of Johannesburg. He was born and raised in East London, South Africa.
