UBS has made a number of changes to the senior management team responsible for ultra-high net worth clients in Hong Kong. Jean-Claude Humair (pictured) has been appointed head of investment platforms and solutions (IPS), Asia-Pacific (Apac), replacing Matthew Rule, who will be responsible for the division's distribution in the region.

In his new role, Humair will report to Christian Wiesendanger, who was recently appointed to run IPS, and to Edmund Koh, UBS' head of private banking in Asia. As a result of Humair's appointment the bank has reshuffled its regional market coverage with the appointment of Adeline Chien as regional market manager of domestic Hong Kong, and the promotion of LH Koh to regional market manager for domestic Hong Kong and international Japanese clients. The appointments of Humair, Chien, and Koh become effective in March.

In addition, the Swiss bank has appointed Stefan Lecher as local product head for Hong Kong, effective in January. Lecher, who is the head of IPS' client portfolio management in Asia, will take on the product responsibilities of Bryan Crawford, who runs investment funds and alternatives distribution globally as global head of alternatives & syndicate distribution.

Mainsky AM taps Axa IM director

Thomas Hopf has been appointed head of international sales at Mainsky Asset Management in Frankfurt. Hopf was formerly a director for business development family offices and head of distribution banks at Axa Investment Managers, also in Frankfurt, senior advisor at Focam Family Office and head of sales and senior sales positions for Germany and Austria at HSBC, UBS Global Asset Management, LGT Asset Management and Franklin Templeton.

RBC Wealth Management has hired Mitesh Patel as a structured products specialist based in London. Patel was previously employed in structured products advisory at Julius Baer, equity derivatives sales at BBVA and started his career at Societe Generale, where he worked in commodities structuring and equity derivatives sales.

Avaloq appoints head of Apac business

Banking software provider Avaloq is strengthening its position in Asia Pacific by bundling its regional service and software offering which will be headed by Chris Beukers (pictured). Beukers joins Avaloq from Pactera Technology International as managing director Asia Pacific.

Beukers is an experienced industry expert with more than 25 years of international experience. Before joining Avaloq, he was executive vice president and general manager of the Asia Pacific Business Group at Pactera Technology International. At Pactera, he has led a team of over 700 professionals across Asia Pacific with a focus on blue-chip customers in the strategic markets Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia. Over the course of his career, he has held several executive positions and led business operations in Europe, the United States and Asia Pacific.

Beukers replaces Peter Scott, who had been with Avaloq since 2013. Scott has driven 'significant growth' across the Apac region including the establishment of the Singapore service centre, the launch of three new regional offices in Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong and a number of deals with clients such as Maybank, Deutsche Bank, Citic, Bank of Asia and Crestone.

CS appoints head of sales trading Emea

Credit Suisse has appointed Guy Dunning as head of sales trading for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (Emea), in London, as it continues to expand its equities business. Dunning joins from Deutsche Bank where he spent the past 13 years, most recently as co-head of high touch cash business, Europe. Dunning joined Deutsche from Mirabaud Securities. Dunning will be based in London and report to report to Mike Di Iorio, head of equities, Emea.

Dunning's appointment is the latest of a number of senior hires by the Swiss bank in recent months  to revamp the structured products business including Di Iorio, former head of equities distribution at Barclays in London, who joined as head of equities in Europe, Middle East & Africa (Emea), and Michael Ebert, who left Bank of America Merrill Lynch to join the Swiss bank as global head of equity derivatives and international trading solutions. Di Iorio and Ebert report to Mike Stewart, head of equities.

BlueCrest appoints portfolio manager

Imran Lakha, formerly senior equity derivatives trader from Citigroup, has joined BlueCrest Capital Management as a portfolio manager in London. Lakha joined from Citi where has spent the past four years. Prior to joining Citi, Lakha spent almost 13 years at Bank of America Merrill Lynch most recently as head of European index flow options trading where he was responsible for the index flow desk. Prior to that, he was head of European index options trading.

Lakha started his career as a trader primarily responsible for trading FTSE vanilla flow book at Credit Suisse before joining Bank of America as a director in 2007.

DBS appoints head of WM in Hong Kong

DBS has hired Ajay Mathur as managing director and head of consumer banking group & wealth management in Hong Kong. Ajay who replaces Royce Teo will report to DBS Hong Kong's CEO, Sebastian Paredes.

Ajay has more than 20 years of extensive retail and wealth exposure in Indonesia, Singapore and India. Prior to joining DBS, he was ANZ's deputy CEO and director, retail & private banking, in Indonesia. He first started his career with Bank of America and then moved to ABN Amro in India. In 2008, Ajay joined Royal Bank of Scotland in Singapore as executive director, head of retail and wealth, and subsequently ANZ in 2011 with ANZ's acquisition of Royal Bank of Scotland's retail and wealth business.

Manulife AM adds to equities in Singapore

Manulife Asset Management has appointed Chan Hock Fai as head of equities, Singapore. Hock Fai's primary responsibilities are to lead all of the Singapore-based equity strategies and have oversight of the local equities team.

Hock Fai has over 20 years of industry experience of Singapore's asset management landscape. Prior to joining Manulife Asset Management, Hock Fai was director of investment for Amundi Asset Management in Singapore where he managed Singapore, regional (Asia Pacific ex-Japan) and global multi-asset portfolios. Hock Fai began his career as a software engineer with Singapore Telecommunications Ltd.