Neil Macdonald is set to commence as head of the asset managers segment in Asia Pacific from Friday.
In the newly created role, Mr Macdonald will be held responsible for leading State Street’s engagement strategy for asset manager clients in the APAC region, including strategic direction, solutions structuring and overall growth of the segment.
He will report to Donna Milrod, head of global asset managers segment and the global clients divison, as well as Mostapha Tahiri, chief executive for Asia Pacific.
Mr Macdonald will join State Street from KPMG, where he was the head of the wealth and asset management Centre of Excellence, building a consulting business in Hong Kong and China.
“Asset managers are key segment for our Asia Pacific business which continues to be a growth engine for State Street,” Mr Tahiri said.
“We are excited to create this new role dedicated to supporting asset managers to achieve sustainable growth as they navigate the rapidly evolving and vibrant Asia Pacific marketplace and harness the power of innovation and transformation.
“Neil’s experience and deep understanding of asset managers’ needs will strengthen our positioning to be an essential partner and trusted adviser for asset managers in the region.”
He has close to two decades of experience in the asset management industry, State Street reported.
Previous to KPMG, Mr Maconald was the chief operating officer of global investment solutions at JP Morgan Asset Management and chief operating officer for BlackRock’s institutional clients in EMEA.
He also worked in the banking sector prior to asset management, holding senior positions at Barclays and NatWest Bank.
State Street is planning to combine Mr Macdonald’s local knowledge and experience with its proprietary investment servicing platform to support the growth of asset managers in the APAC region, Ms Milrod added.
Improving investment performance remained the top priority for asset managers globally, the group found in a study last year.
State Street has now been in the APAC region for almost 40 years.
