Citi moves equities staff out of Hong Kong amid Covid woes

Bloomberg

Citigroup Inc is moving half a dozen senior equities staff from Hong Kong to Singapore and other markets, in one of the biggest signs yet the Chinese territory’s steadfast zero-Covid approach is prompting global banks to shift key staff out of the Asian financial hub.
Lee McQueen, head of pan Asia equity blocks, is among managing directors relocating to Singapore, following a recent move by Sue Lee, the region’s head of equity derivatives distribution. Another four to five
directors, including Kevin Zolkiewicz, head of futures execution for Asia-Pacific, Rob McVie, who focuses on prime finance, as well as Abhishek Choudhary, head of equity execution advisory in the region, are in talks to transfer to Singapore.
“The bank was being as flexible as possible to support staff who wanted to relocate due to family reasons or for client coverage,” said James Griffiths, a Hong Kong-based spokesman for Citigroup.
While the number of relocations is tiny compared to the bank’s workforce in the division, it would be one of the biggest shift of senior executives by a global bank out of Hong Kong amid growing concern over the city’s status as a regional finance center. Business groups have sounded warnings that the city is facing an exodus of foreign talent as its dogged approach to keeping infections at bay, which includes two weeks of quarantine for incoming travellers, is making it hard to operate.
Hong Kong is now struggling to contain a fifth wave of the virus. Chinese President Xi Jinping this week called on city officials to take “all necessary measures” in getting the outbreak under control, an unusually direct intervention that could pave the way for a broad lockdown. Other financial centers such as Singapore are opting to live with virus.
Shifting staff out of Hong Kong is a sensitive issue for global banks, who are all seeking to build up major businesses in mainland China. Hong Kong has long served as a gateway to mainland China, and some banks are still building up headcount in the city amid the difficulties.
Citigroup has increased its staff in Hong Kong by more than 300 in past 12 months, one-third of which was recruited or transferred from overseas to “support client led growth,” said Griffiths. In the equities business, the bank has added 25 people in the city during the period, he said.
Overall, the New York-based lender employs more than 4,600 people in Hong Kong.
Hiring from outside of Hong Kong spanned across investment banking, sales and trading and cash management, he said.
The bank’s relocations are in response to client demand and also partially part of plans to beef up further in equities in the region. Citi runs its markets business out of Singapore, where Julia Raiskin, the bank’s head of Asia Pacific equities, is based.