HSBC Singapore wealth centre expansion continues after the bank opened its fourth and largest facility in the city‑state, adding a 7,884‑sq‑ft site with 14 meeting rooms at Singapore Land Tower. The HSBC Singapore wealth centre will serve Premier Elite customers launched in 2024 for clients with at least SGD1.2m (USD1m) in relationship balances. HSBC said the facility is part of a broader upgrade of its Singapore network and wealth proposition as the lender deepens its focus

In This Issue: - The universal challenge of family leadership succession and its risks. - Common planning gaps and pitfalls revealed. The Universal Challenge of Family Leadership Succession Leadership succession planning is a "universal imperative" for families of wealth, transcending geographical, cultural, and even religious differences. In particular, family leadership transitions are inherently riskier and more complex than corporate successions. In corporations, authorit

The Financial Services Development Council welcomed the Hong Kong budget Finance+ agenda, saying measures in the 2026-27 Budget will deepen market liquidity and strengthen the city’s role as a global financial centre and international gateway for cross-border capital. Chairman Benjamin Hung said the multipronged approach supports building a fuller debt market and a more efficient yield curve, while executive director Rocky Tung praised plans to modernise capital markets, incl

Hong Kong will transfer about HKD52.8bn(USD6.8bn) back to government accounts in 2026-27 to better fund its capital account amid heavy infrastructure spending, Financial Secretary Paul Chan said. The Hong Kong fiscal transfer includes about HKD15.8bn from funds set up outside government accounts after reviewing 36 purpose-specific funds, with some vehicles to be closed or consolidated. Another HKD37bn of accumulated surplus from the Bond Fund, created in 2009 to support Silve

Singapore dividends 2025 reached a record USD18.7bn, up 19.1% from a year earlier, helped by bank special dividends and higher payouts, Capital Group said in its Global Equity Study. Global dividends also rose 7% to a record USD2.09tr, the report said. Capital Group noted Singapore’s top-line growth was lifted by one-offs, while core growth was more modest, and said banks’ special dividends reflected strong capital positions. Jeik Sohn, head of client group for Southeast Asia

SCB Asset Management expects a 2026 risk-asset upcycle, setting a best-case year-end target of 1,600 for the Stock Exchange of Thailand index and aiming to lift assets under management above THB2tr(USD56bn), its chief executive said. CEO Narongsak Plodmechai cited stabilising global equities, a rebound in parts of Asia and easier liquidity as major central banks cut rates. SCBAM aims to reach 1 million investors this year after opening 100,000 new accounts in the first two mo

Raffles Family Office welcomed Hong Kong’s 2026-27 Budget, saying proposed enhancements to the family office tax regime would help cement the city’s position as a global wealth hub, while urging policies to cover both single- and multi-family offices in tandem, Group CEO Chi Man Kwan said. He pointed to a government-backed market study showing Hong Kong had more than 3,380 single-family offices by end-2025, up over 25% in two years. The budget includes plans to legislate this

Hong Kong will inject more capital into the Hong Kong Investment Corporation after it largely allocated its initial HKD62bn (USD7.9bn), as the government widens the fund’s role to draw long-term money into high-quality commercial property projects, Financial Secretary Paul Chan said. The Hong Kong Investment Corporation has invested in more than 190 projects, with 10 portfolio companies already listed and another 20 preparing to list this year, he said. Chan also said the fun

Singapore’s three largest banks drew SGD77bn (USD 60.4bn) in net new money in 2025 as geopolitical strains and trade uncertainty pushed wealthy Asians to shift assets to the city-state, highlighting Singapore banks wealth inflows. OCBC said net new money rose 30% to SGD27bn, lifting wealth AUM to SGD343bn, while DBS reported SGD39bn of inflows that brought wealth AUM to SGD488bn, and UOB logged SGD11bn, taking high-net-worth AUM to SGD201bn. The surge is pushing lenders to re

The Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission has eased IPO free-float rules for large listings, introducing a tiered public ownership framework aimed at unlocking mega-IPOs as the market struggles to absorb big deals. Under SEC Memorandum Circular No. 11, issuers expecting market capitalisation above PHP50bn (USD890m) at listing must sell at least 15% to the public, subject to a minimum offer size of PHP10bn, versus the previous flat 20% requirement. For firms valued at

Asian families with family offices in Singapore are increasingly adding bases in Hong Kong, Dubai and Abu Dhabi as they pursue investable assets, Standard Chartered’s Raymond Ang said, highlighting an Asian family offices multi-base strategy. Singapore will remain the bedrock for family offices in Asia, he said, but other centres play different roles, from Hong Kong’s capital markets to the Gulf as a gateway to the West. Singapore had more than 2,000 single-family offices at

Singapore’s asset management industry grew to about S$6.7tr (USD4.96tr) in 2024, up roughly 12% from a year earlier, underscoring Singapore asset management AUM growth and the city-state’s role as a hub for international strategies, Russell Adam, senior managing partner at Resource Group Holdings wrote. About 77% of assets originated from outside Singapore and nearly 88% were invested overseas, he said. Alternatives including private equity, venture capital, private credit an

The APAC private banking market is forecast to grow at a 9.43% compound annual rate from 2026 to 2031, expanding from USD44.3bn in 2025 to USD76.05bn by 2031, Mordor Intelligence said, pointing to APAC private banking market growth. The market is expected to reach USD48.47bn in 2026, up from USD44.3bn in 2025, as rising high-net-worth populations and large inter-generational wealth transfers lift demand for advice and discretionary mandates. Banks are also investing more in t

China urged the US to scrap unilateral US tariffs after the Supreme Court, in a 6-3 ruling, struck down many of President Donald Trump’s levies as beyond his authority under a 1977 emergency-powers law. Trump responded by unveiling a flat duty on imports worldwide, lifting the rate from 10% to 15% under a separate legal provision. China’s commerce ministry said it was conducting a comprehensive assessment of the decision and called on Washington to quickly end tariff measures

Azimut Investment Management’s Korea wealth head Kim Hyeong-guk said many Korea family offices are in practice expanded private-banking services rather than full institutional structures, arguing the country needs tax relief and a deeper investment ecosystem to build models comparable with Singapore. He said securities firms began using the family-office label after the pandemic, but few clients have set up entities with dedicated governance and operating functions. Kim point

Economist Impact will hold the sixth annual Technology for Change Asia summit in Hong Kong on March 11-12, bringing together business leaders and policymakers to discuss how agentic AI, smart infrastructure and regulation are reshaping Asian enterprises and supply chains. Chaired by The Economist’s deputy editor Tom Standage, the conference at the Hopewell Hotel will focus on execution challenges including regulatory divergence, AI-driven cybersecurity risks, ownership of AI-

China’s private equity exit drought deepened in 2025, with top global buyout firms failing to record a single publicly disclosed full divestment from mainland portfolio companies for a second straight year, the Financial Times reported. Citing PitchBook and Dealogic data, the FT said 10 major houses including KKR, Blackstone, CVC, TPG, Warburg Pincus, Carlyle, Bain Capital, EQT, Advent and Apollo posted zero completed exits, piling pressure on China teams and slowing capital

Bursa Malaysia said it will overhaul how it reports who is trading its shares, splitting investors using nominee accounts into ‘large’ and ‘small’ categories from April 6, as it seeks to improve market transparency. Nominee structures separate legal from beneficial ownership and are widely used by online platforms, meaning some retail orders have been showing up in data as institutional or foreign activity. Bursa said the change followed market feedback seeking clearer measur

AYU, a private members’ community for family offices and alternative investment funds, has launched AYU Capital, an AI capital matching service for family offices using its ‘Cupid’ platform. The firm said the service connects funds and founders with verified family office investors while allowing investors to remain anonymous. AYU said the platform aims to cut wasted time caused by unsolicited pitches and fragmented data by structuring submissions and generating targeted intr

Asia is now the world’s fastest-growing wealth region, but Asia family offices are increasingly shifting to a multi-hub model rather than relocating to a single centre, according to IQ-EQ research and industry advisers. Asia accounts for about 30% of the world’s single-family offices, with roughly 40% formed in the past 15 years. As portfolios tilt towards private equity, real estate, hedge funds and direct deals, oversight from one location is becoming harder, pushing functi