Francisco Fernandez, chairman of Swiss banking IT firm Avaloq, won’t go idle, despite having relinquished his operative responsibilities. He has set his sights on Asia, as he told a newspaper in the fast-growing region.
Francisco Fernandez’ announcement in December that he planned to hand over operative control of Avaloq was one of the main people stories of 2017. At the time – in fact less than 20 days ago – he pronounced that henceforth he would concentrate on his supervisory role as chairman of the firm.
But Fernandez is a dynamic personality and it wasn’t to be expected that he would simply lean back and enjoy life. A passionate fan of Ferrari cars, Fernandez loves pace and action.
Asia – Where Growth Is to Be Had
And indeed, he has already set his sights on new adventures as he told «South China Morning Post» in an interview. He aims to accelerate Avaloq’s growth in Asia: «The change will allow me to have more time to focus on expansion plans and the future development strategy, such as how to expand further in mainland China and Hong Kong.»
China in particular is a market with big potential for a company such as Avaloq, focusing as it is on business with wealthy clients. The Swiss firm already has CITIC Bank International, Agricultural Bank of China, Singapore’s DBS and Malaysia’s Maybank signed up, customers that aim to bolster their wealth management services.
Furthermore, Avaloq is also involved in the development of outsourcing centers, such as the one the company operates in the city-state of Singapore.
IPO on the Horizon
Fernandez plans an initial public offering within three to five years and is looking at Asia as a hub for this major plan of his. The Avaloq chairman told the newspaper that is specifically is looking at the Hong Kong exchange as a possible place for an Avaloq IPO.
He may have taken a keener look at Hong Kong after the financial market recently allowed the introduction of shares giving company founders more voting rights.
