News

Aberdeen hires fixed income strategist, announces plans to build team in KL

Singapore, 14 July 2011 – Aberdeen Asset Management Asia Limited (‘Aberdeen’) has hired Suhaila Suboh as a Asian fixed income strategist. She joined earlier this month as Aberdeen seeks to build its Asian fixed income capability, which has added almost US$1bn year-to-date across products.

Suhaila will work alongside Aberdeen’s thirteen-strong Asian fixed income team, based initially in Kuala Lumpur. She will be joined there shortly by new hires there in credit and macro research. This is ahead of the Group’s plans to introduce Shariah-compliant retail funds into Malaysia.

In her role Suhaila will help implement policy and articulate Aberdeen’s strategic and portfolio views through research papers and presentations to clients and prospects.

Suhaila most recently spent four years doing research and advising on investment strategy for the investment management supervision department of Malaysia’s Securities Commission. Before that she was for three years an economist at Bank Negara Malaysia, the country’s central bank.

She has also worked in both New York, on mergers and acquisitions at Rothschild, the investment bank, and in London, where she was on attachment to Aberdeen’s Emerging Market debt team.

A Malaysian national, Suhaila graduated from Georgetown University in the US and holds an MBA from the UK’s Warwick Business School. She became a CFA charterholder in 2006.

Anthony Michael, head of Asia Pacific fixed income at Aberdeen, comments:

“Suhaila adds depth to our team at a crucial time. Aside from her international education and work experience, she brings exceptional analytical and presentational skills. With interest in Asian fixed income surging worldwide, it is important we are visible as leaders in the asset class. This is a US$6.8bn* business but we firmly believe it’s just the beginning in terms of asset gathering, as funds leave indebted Western borrowers for the relative value and safety of Asia.”

Gerald Ambrose, head of Aberdeen’s KL office, adds:

“Suhaila is a welcome addition. After six years in Malaysia, Aberdeen now has a substantial institutional franchise, resting on our expertise in regional and global equities. It is our intention to replicate that success in fixed income, hence we are hiring for a handful of positions. In time this should help cement our position as one of Malaysia’s leading foreign-owned asset managers.”