Indian talent has been at the forefront of Singapore’s finance sector for the past 20 years. Banks in Singapore have turned to the subcontinent to plug skill shortages in technology and to help expand their non-resident Indian coverage desks in private banking, for example.
But it’s not just in wealth and tech where Indians are playing leading roles in Singaporean financial services. We looked through online public profiles to find senior Singapore-based investment bankers and traders who started their careers in India. Here’s a selection.
Rohit Chatterji, co-head of M&A, Asia Pacific, JP Morgan
Chatterji has been with J.P. Morgan since 1993 – when he joined its securities joint venture with ICICI in India. He first relocated to Singapore in 1997 and (aside from a four-year stint as head of India IBD in Mumbai) he has moved between Singapore and Hong Kong in various senior roles ever since. Chatterji made MD in 2006 and became head of South and South East Asia M&A and corporate finance. He’s since been promoted and is currently head of banking for South East Asia and co-head of M&A for Asia Pacific.
Sanchit Jain, global head of EM Asia options, and head of FXO Singapore, Barclays
Engineering graduate Jain started his career in 2003 as a software engineer at Indian consultancy giant Infosys. He got his first banking job – as an FX options trader at J.P. Morgan – only in 2008, after completing a diploma in finance. Jain worked in Credit Suisse’s FX team in Singapore from 2010 to 2016, before moving to Hong Kong for a senior management role: head of emerging markets options for Asia at Societe Generale. He joined Barclays in July last year.
Neha Bakshi, head of private side structuring, Standard Chartered
Bakshi shifted to Singapore with Deutsche Bank in 2002 after receiving her MBA from the Indian Institute of Management (Bangalore). She then rose rapidly up the ranks at the German firm, becoming a director in 2006 and holding several senior roles in both Singapore and Hong Kong, including head of North Asia rates structuring, head of Asia commodities asset structuring, and head of third party sales coverage for South Asia. In 2015, Bakshi joined Standard Chartered in Singapore as a managing director and head of private side structuring.
Mayank Navalakha, global head, FX and PM options, ANZ
Standard Chartered aside, foreign banks don’t base many international heads in Singapore. Navalakha is an exception – since May 2016 he’s been leading FX and PM options at ANZ globally. Fourteen years ago, however, Navalakha wasn’t even working in the banking sector. Armed with an engineering degree, he began his career as a senior applications engineer at Oracle. From 2006 to 2016 Navalakha was ensconced at Barclays, latterly as FX options head for Asia.
Nilesh Jasani, co-head of Asian equities and head of research for Asia, Jefferies
Jasani joined Jefferies in 2010 when he started a 15-month stint as the local CEO for Singapore. He was then appointed head of research for Asia, and in June this year he also took on the role of head of research for Asia. Prior to Jefferies, Jasani was at Credit Suisse, latterly as research head for India, according to his profile. He spent his early career as an Asian strategist at HSBC and Credit Lyonnais Securities.
Sid Mathur, head of Asia EM FX and local markets strategy, Citi
Mathur’s first job was at ICICI in 2000 and he then did a five-year stint as an FX and fixed income strategist at J.P. Morgan. In 2006 the American bank relocated him to Singapore in a similar role, and his career soon took off in the city state. Mathur joined UBS in 2009 and became head of emerging markets Asia rates and FX strategy, according to his profile. He’s held his current job at Citi since 2013.
Vishesh Gupta, head of Asia TMT investment banking, SMBC
As we reported at the time, Gupta joined SMBC in May 2017 from Standard Chartered, where he had a been a director-level TMT banker. He landed his regional head-of role just four years after starting his banking career. Gupta joined Stan Chart in Singapore in October 2012 and covered TMT across Southeast Asia. Before that he spent four years at J.P. Morgan, first as an equity research analyst in Hong Kong, and then as a lead analyst in Singapore.
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