Blackrock appoints head of wealth for Asia Pacific

BlackRock has appointed former Westpac executive Guilherme Lima as head of wealth for Asia Pacific to grow its private banking business in the region.

Working alongside wealth managers, private banks, and family offices, Lima will develop strategies that drew from the full spectrum of BlackRock's offerings to address the needs of wealthy clients throughout the region.

Lima joined BlackRock from Westpac, where he led private banking, commercial banking, and small and medium-sized enterprise banking as chief executive of the business division from 2019.

Previously, he worked at HSBC in Hong Kong in a variety of leadership roles in wealth, premier banking, and strategy after ten years at McKinsey & Co.

BlackRock chair and head of Asia Pacific, Rachel Lord, said Asia's wealth market was on the cusp of remarkable expansion and transformation.

"The appointment of a head of wealth is an important step in the way we serve our clients in this space. Guil's decades of experience across global platforms bring together the best market and wealth management practices to the benefit of clients and will help us achieve our growth ambitions in APAC," she said.

BlackRock said the wealth industry in Asia was facing opportunities and challenges posed by demographic and regulatory changes, as well as growth in individual retirement planning and digitalisation.

"Wealth clients want access to global investment capabilities and thought leadership, as well as local market insights and a variety of wealth solutions as they search for efficiency and better outcomes under dynamic market conditions."

Lima added that he looked forward to partnering with colleagues to equip Blackrock's wealth clients in Asia with whole portfolio solutions.