Wellington Management plans Asia expansion targeting growing wealth in China and wider region
- Privately held investment manager plans to increase headcount by 20 per cent in the region this year
- Firm remains committed to Hong Kong, sees opportunity in Wealth Connect programme
Wellington Management plans to increase its headcount by about 20 per cent in Asia this year as it seeks to capitalise on rising affluence in the region, particularly in China, according to the head of its Asia-Pacific business.
Asia is the independent investment manager’s fastest growing market globally and where the company is putting “more and more of our resources”, according to Scott Geary, partner and head of Wellington’s Asia-Pacific client group.
“We’re very bullish on China,” Geary said. “Whether it’s the huge wealth effect or the demographics driving the need for more retirement solutions, we certainly think from an alpha perspective: it is a market that has a high amount of dispersion.”
China has been a more retail driven market, but is becoming more institutionally driven, which plays into Wellington’s strength serving institutional investors, Geary said.
Increasing inclusion of Chinese stocks and bonds in global benchmarks also makes China an attractive market, particularly for Wellington’s global clients, he said.