DBS wants more private bankers to tap Asia's ultra rich

It eyes boosting its current pool of 200 private bankers by 10-20%.

According to Bloomberg, DBS Group Holdings Ltd. plans to increase the number of relationship managers in its private banking business to tap into surging Asian wealth.

Headcount will rise between 10 percent and 20 percent this year -- after increasing more than 20 percent in 2017 -- adding to a team that currently comprises 200 private bankers, Lawrence Lua, deputy private-banking head, said in an interview in Singapore on Tuesday.

Hiring will be spread across the three main teams covering Southeast Asia, North Asia, and international markets plus Indians living abroad.

Asia-Pacific wealth managers have benefited from the region’s growing prosperity, with wealth rising faster than North America and Europe. Assets owned by rich Asians rose 8 percent in 2016 to $18.8 trillion, led by Southeast Asia and Greater China, according to a report from Capgemini SA. It forecast an increase to about $40 trillion by 2025.

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