KPMG Creates Wealth and Asset Management Centre of Excellence and Appoints Head in Hong Kong

HONG KONG,Dec. 13,2019 -- Neil Macdonald has been named KPMG China's Head of Wealth and Asset Management Centre of Excellence (CoE),a newly created role based in Hong Kong,where he moved in July 2019. The Wealth and Asset Management Centre of Excellence (CoE) reflects KPMG's global strategy to increase investment in wealth and asset management and take advantage of the forecast growth in these sectors over the next decade.

Neil was previously a Managing Director of the firm's asset management practice in KPMG UK,which he joined in 2017. He has over 15 years of asset management industry experience working in various senior front office roles for a number of global investment firms,including BlackRock and JP Morgan Asset Management.

Andrew Weir,Global Head of Asset Management,KPMG,commented: "We are very pleased to have such an industry veteran as Neil at the helm of our new Centre of Excellence. His deep and varied global experience will inject a new layer of expertise and ideas across KPMG's existing suite of asset and wealth management capabilities to support our global and local clients here in Asia at a time of exciting growth in these sectors.The creation of the Centre of Excellence and Neil's appointment also reflects a strategic move by KPMG to look at the ASPAC region holistically for wealth and asset managers,while continuing to offer deep,local expertise."

Neil Macdonald,Head of Wealth and Asset Management CoE,KPMG China,said of his appointment: "I'm hugely energised by the creation of the Centre of Excellence. I'm looking forward to unlocking a host of exciting growth opportunities across all of Asia,in particular in mainland China where the onshore landscape is developing rapidly but remains fraught with challenges. We aim tohelp our clients win in their chosen markets by working alongside them to find answers to the really tough questions: How do we win in China? What should ESG mean for our firm? How do we become a digital enterprise in our front,middle and back offices?"

Before entering the asset management industry,Neil held senior positions in the banking sector where he led significant change programmes spanning public policy,HR and technology. Neil has also worked in corporate strategy,with specific responsibility for managing Group-level executive and operating committees. Neil's broad skillset spans business strategy,governance,distribution and sales leadership,as well as product and service development.

Neil holds a Bachelor of Social Sciences degree in Economics and a Master of Science in Engineering degree in Operational Research from the University of Birmingham,as well as an MBA in Finance with Distinction from Cass Business School.

About KPMG China

KPMG China is based in 23 offices across 21 cities with around 12,000 partners and staff in Beijing,Changsha,Chengdu,Chongqing,Foshan,Fuzhou,Guangzhou,Haikou,Hangzhou,Nanjing,Qingdao,Shanghai,Shenyang,Shenzhen,Tianjin,Wuhan,Xiamen,Xi'an,Zhengzhou,Hong Kong SAR and Macau SAR. Working collaboratively across all these offices,KPMG China can deploy experienced professionals efficiently,wherever our client is located.

KPMG is a global network of professional services firms providing Audit,Tax and Advisory services. We operate in 153 countries and territories and have 207,000 people working in member firms around the world. The independent member firms of the KPMG network are affiliated with KPMG International Cooperative ("KPMG International"),a Swiss entity. Each KPMG firm is a legally distinct and separate entity and describes itself as such.

In 1992,KPMG became the first international accounting network to be granted a joint venture licence in mainland China. KPMG was also the first among the Big Four in mainland China to convert from a joint venture to a special general partnership,as of 1 August 2012. Additionally,the Hong Kong firm can trace its origins to 1945. This early commitment to this market,together with an unwavering focus on quality,has been the foundation for accumulated industry experience,and is reflected in KPMG's appointment for multidisciplinary services (including audit,tax and advisory) by some of China's most prestigious companies.

About KPMG's Wealth & Asset Management Centre of Excellence

The Wealth & Asset Management (WAM) Centre of Excellence (CoE) has been created as part of the KPMG's global strategy to increase investment in the WAM sectors in order to take advantage of the forecast growth in these sectors in the next decade. The vision for the CoE is to become the "first call" for C-suite clients across the wealth and asset management segments in Hong Kong and China.