The bank — which is benefiting from booming deals and trading with its Wall Street rivals — is seeking to rebuild in some markets, and is targeting ChinaAccording to Jaideep Khanna, head of Barclays Asia-Pacific, India, Singapore and Australia will expand India Chief Executive Officer. It is also hiring in Japan and Hong Kong.
“We are profitable in this area and I sincerely hope this will continue in 2022 as well,” Khanna, 56, said in an interview. “Our focus is going to be consistent – try and stick to the areas where we are strong. There are enough areas for us to drive returns today and that’s what we’re focused on.”
Barclays expanding in Asia after former CEO Jess Staley Five years ago began a global round of job cuts that shut down its cash securities operations across Asia. The bank then reduced operations to countries including Australia, South Korea and Malaysia, but maintained its principal brokerage and derivatives business in the region.
“Barclays in 2021-22 is a very different business from what it was before 2016,” Khanna said. “It is now more focused, generating better returns with more local knowledge and greater self-awareness.”
The bank joined rivals such as HSBC Holdings Plc. And Standard Chartered plc opened one of the world’s largest banking markets to foreign competition as President Xi Jinping looked to strengthen its presence in Asia while focusing on China. Barclays has already made several strategic appointments in the region this year, including being a regional head of distressed credit and the loans business in special circumstances.
“We are small in China, we see potential and we want to continue to invest there in a calibrated and deliberate manner,” he said. “Diversification in financial services is the holy grail. It has saved firms. ,
Unlike peers such as UBS Group AG and Citigroup Inc., Barclays currently has a small presence in China and operates through one branch and one representative office.
In India, where Barclays has the largest workforce outside the UK, the bank plans to invest just over $400 million to grow its corporate, investment and wealth management businesses after a flurry of deals and investments in the South Asian nation. is to do. in August.
Barclays is “perhaps the only international bank of our size and stature to have a regional CEO outside India – which just shows how important India is,” Khanna said.
He said Barclays also plans to deploy its private banking business in Singapore and investment banking in Australia locally. The bank has a stake in Australian advisory firm Barrenzoi Capital Partners, which last year hired several key deal-makers from banks, including UBS and JPMorgan Chase & Co.