BNP PAM Sets Up New Office In Brunei
By P Marilyn

Bandar Seri Begawan - BNP Paribas Asset Management (BNP PAM), leader in the European asset management industry, yesterday officially launched its new office in the Sultanate with the aim of being a leading asset management company here, at a ceremony at the Indera Kayangan Ballroom of the Empire Hotel and Country Club.

BNP PAM is known to be active in contributing to the development of Brunei's wealth management industry, especially in the areas of tailored investment solutions, risk management and investor education.

Speaking at the launching was the Minister of Finance TI Pehin Orang Kaya Laila Setia Dato Seri SetiaAwg Hj Abd Rahman bin Hj Ibrahim. He said the event signifies another milestone towards realising the country's vision in turning the financial services industry into one of the important economic development cluster that will contribute significantly towards the country's long-term economic diversification goal.

"Its initiative also underscores close cooperation and mutual commitment between the player and the regulator towards promoting the development of the financial services industry in the country for the benefit of participating players and the country as a whole," he said.

Also present at the event were Dato Paduka Awg Hj Ali bin Apong, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, Mr Lawrence Lo, CEO of BNP PAM Asia Ltd, and Mr Cheng Tan Feng, Executive Director of BNP PAM Singapore Ltd. Following the launching, an investor's forum "Alternative Investing: Currencies and Structured Products" was held, which was aimed towards practitioners and the investment community.

The topics for discussion, which reflects the emergence of growth opportunities in "newer" investment areas like alternative, structured and Islamic investments, covered the current "Economic and Financial Developments in a Global and Asian Context", which was presented by Dr Andrew Freris, Chief Economist of BNP Paribas.

Other topics included "Investing in Currencies: Currency Alpha Strategies" presented by Dr Hai Xin, Head of Overlay Asset Management Asia Pacific, and "Structured and Indexed Investments" by Mr Bruno Lebeda, Head of Structured and Indexed Investments BNP PAM Asia Ltd.

The Ministry of Finance supports such seminars in hope that it can provide investors with a better understanding to the global investment environment of today,- whilst giving an insight to the individual strategies and techniques that are currently employed by sophisticated investors.

"There' is, in my view, no better demonstration of responsibility in financial markets, than the provision of investor education," said the Minister.

Meanwhile, Mr Jean-Pierre Bernard, Regional Head for Southeast Asia and India, BNP Paribas, Singapore, said this is the first seminar conducted by BNP Paribas since it was awarded the asset management license from the Ministry of Finance and Brunei International Financial Centre.

The seminar was organised in collaboration with Baiduri Bank, who will be a key distributor partner for BNP PAM's investment product, while BNP Paribas, a global leader in banking and financial services, has been a strategic investor of the nation's very own Baiduri Bank.

"We have benefitted from the unique synergy between Baiduri Bank Group and BNP Paribas, leveraging on a combination of in-depth local knowledge and global expertise to bring quality, innovative financial products and services to the people of Brunei," said Mr Pierre Imhof, General Manager of Baiduri Bank.

The establishment of BNP PAM in the nation signifies the international community's recognition of Brunei's increasingly dynamic financial sector.

BNP PAM's office in Brunei represents yet another node in Asia to reinforce BNP PAM's strategy of developing and delivering Asian-based investment solutions customised for Asian investors. This is the ninth BNP PAM's office in Asia, along with off-ices on other key Asian locations like Singapore and Hong Kong. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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