More charges have been issued to one of the 10 arrested in Singapore’s largest money laundering case. Zhang Ruijin, one of the 10 arrested in Singapore’s $2.2 billion money laundering scandal, faces five more charges, according to a «Straits Times» report citing court proceedings. One of the charges involves the alleged use of a forged document to cheat Standard Chartered. The four other charges involve alleged possession of HK$208 million ($27 million) which represents benefits of criminal conduct. Total Charges In total, Zhang, 45, was issued eight charges with three others handed in Augus ..read more

Optionality in terms of in-kind redemption and subscription for crypto exchange-traded funds could act as a competitive edge for Hong Kong, according to KPMG. Hong Kong is gradually ushering in the first batch of spot crypto exchange-traded funds (ETF). Those that have announced intentions to launch their own Bitcoin and Ether ETFs include Bosera, China AMC as well as Harvest, which said trading could begin as early as the end of April.  According to Robert Zhan, director of risk consulting at KPMG China, the approvals are a key milestone in Hong Kong’s crypto hub ambitions and showcase ..read more

With the AGM now behind it, UBS faces the protracted work of fully integrating what was once Switzerland's second-largest bank. Beyond that, a possible straightjacket of stricter capital requirements. The question is really whether it – and the country – are still a good fit. The chairman of UBS, Colm Kelleher, dropped hints of the group's current thinking at the annual general meeting with shareholders on Wednesday, the first since it bedded down the acquisition of Credit Suisse after a forced government-prompted rescue action a little more than a year ago. In his opening speech,  ..read more

The asset and wealth management unit of Goldman Sachs will look to expand headcount in Asia, which it calls a key growth market. Goldman Sachs plans to hire «steadily» in Asia with Singapore, Australia and Hong Kong named as key markets in the region. Dubai, which is home to the second-largest Indian diaspora after the US, was also named as a key market. «Asia will continue to be a very big opportunity for us,» said Goldman's global head of asset and wealth management Marc Nachmann in an interview with «Straits Times». Singapore Growth According to Nachmann, Singapore’s headco ..read more

To date, Switzerland is the third largest market for Cuban cigars in the world. However, this status quo is currently changing, as the Cuban export monopoly «Habanos» is now cutting off supplies to Switzerland due to the priorities of the new owners in Asia. Hard times are approaching for Swiss «aficionados». When it comes to offering handmade premium cigars from Cuba, Switzerland has so far been a kind of island of bliss. The availability of Cuban cigars has been insufficient in this country in recent years. The background to this is production bottlenecks as a result of the Covid pandemic ..read more

The Hong Kong unit of Beijing-based Harvest Fund Management has secured authorization to launch the much-anticipated cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds. Harvest Global Investments (HGI) has been officially authorized by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) to launch a Bitcoin spot ETF and Ether spot ETF, according to a statement. Both products are expected to start trading on the Hong Kong stock exchange by the end of April.  «This authorization not only reflects Hong Kong's institutional advantages as an international financial center but also demonstrates the region's foresig ..read more

The US Department of Justice is seeking a three-year jail term for former Binance chief Changpeng Zhao. The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has recommended that former Binance chief executive officer Changpeng Zhao serve a 36-month prison sentence for his legal violations, according to a court filing. This follows Binance’s guilty plea in November 2023 that led to $4.3 billion in penalties as well as Zhao’s guilty plea resulting in him stepping down as CEO. «The sentence will not just send a message to Zhao but also to the world,» the DOJ said. «Zhao reaped vast rewar ..read more

Shanghai-based wealth manager Noah Holdings has launched a hiring spree in Hong Kong and Singapore.  Noah Holdings is seeking to grow its number of relationship managers in Hong Kong and Singapore, according to a «Bloomberg» report citing chief financial officer Pan Qing. The Shanghai-based wealth manager aims to increase the count to between 150 and 200. It currently has 100 relationship managers in the offshore hubs with 70 percent in Hong Kong and 30 percent in Singapore. The hires will likely follow the same split. Mainland Consolidation Meanwhile, Noah has also reduced its onshore ..read more

Up to 35,000 jobs could be cut at UBS following the Credit Suisse integration with five rounds of layoffs to reportedly start in mid-2024. How will Asia fare in the multi-billion dollar cost-saving exercise? UBS is seeking to execute five rounds of job cuts from June to November, according to Swiss newspaper «SonntagsZeitung», with the aim of laying off 50 to 60 percent of former Credit Suisse staff. According to analyst estimates, up to 35,000 jobs could go globally as part of efforts to reduce more than $10 billion in costs.  At end-2023, Asia’s headcount surged to 27,638, accounting ..read more

The mainland China securities unit of J.P. Morgan has appointed a new board chair and general manager. J.P. Morgan Securities China Company (JPMSC) has appointed Lu Fang as its board chair, according to a «Reuters» report citing an internal memo. Lu succeeds Park Pu who worked at the firm for nearly a decade and will now assume a new role as senior advisor. In addition, JPMSC has named Greg Yu as general manager. Yu was most recently deputy general manager and will retain his existing role as head of equities. JPMSC won approval in 2021 to convert from a joint venture to a wholly-owned ..read more