Bank of Singapore confirms it has had three resignations from its International Markets desk in Singapore; the bankers are currently serving notice.
The International Markets desk at Bank of Singapore – set up to service global clients who wish to use Singapore as a booking centre – has seen three senior bankers tender their resignation, as finews.asia can reveal.
All three are still working with the bank as part of their notice period. Bank of Singapore is a wholly owned subsidiary of OCBC Bank, Southeast Asia's second largest bank.
Arrangements Made
Philippe Kerkhoven, Market Head of International Markets, has resigned from his post after almost a decade with the bank, a year of which was spent while it was still ING Private Bank in Asia until the end of 2009. He was previously with HSBC Private Bank and Credit Suisse Private Banking, all of these roles were based in Singapore.
Thomas Seiler, Team Head, International Markets at Bank of Singapore has resigned. Seiler joined the bank in March this year and his primary responsibility was to cover the Russian market. He reported to Kerkhoven.
Liron Lev, a Relationship Manager on the International Markets team has also resigned after close to eight years with the bank.
A spokesperson for Bank of Singapore confirmed the resignations, adding that «arrangements have been made within the respective teams to cover their duties».
Singapore Soon Behind Switzerland?
According to a 2016 report by the Boston Consulting Group, Singapore is expected to overtake the U.K. by 2020 to become the world’s second-largest offshore financial centre behind Switzerland.
Local giants such as Bank of Singapore and DBS, both whom have stellar credit ratings, are expected to benefit from this transfer of wealth eastwards.
