Alaa AlMashhadi has been appointed as BNY Saudi Arabia country manager and CEO of BNY’s legal entity in Saudi Arabia. He joins BNY from The Saudi Credit Bureau, where he served as chief business development officer, and board member of its analytics subsidiary, Qarar. This follows the establishment of BNY’s regional headquarters in Riyadh, KSA.…
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UI hires CCO from Vistra
Universal Investment Group has appointed Antonio Soler as chief commercial officer. Soler will join the UI Group’s management board, reporting to Francesca McDonagh, group CEO. He will lead the group’s commercial strategy, overseeing all activities across sales, relationship management, fund distribution, marketing & external communications, and sales enablement. He joins from Vistra, where he most…
Mediolanum appoints BNPP in Spain
BNP Paribas has signed an exclusive agreement with Banco Mediolanum to become the new depositary bank for Banco Mediolanum in Spain, representing a total value of >EUR4.7bn (USD5.5bn) of assets under depositary across 10 investment funds. This integration expands BNP Paribas’ existing relationship with Mediolanum Group in Europe, including services already provided in Ireland and…
Allfunds and Apex collaborate on alts
Allfunds Blockchain and Apex Group have formed a strategic collaboration that enables the full digitisation of the operating model for alternative investment funds, leveraging blockchain technology to streamline fund administration and transfer agency processes. The solution delivers real-time execution, enhancing operational efficiency and data integrity for both the fund administrator and the transfer agent.
SimCorp moves ahead with alts business
SimCorp, the Deutsche Börse-owned fintech, has appointed Hugues Chabanis to the newly-created role of head of SimCorp Alternatives, as the company focuses on the growing importance of innovative solutions within private markets. Chabanis, who has been with SimCorp for 10 years, will also become COO of Domos by SimCorp, the Paris-based organisation SimCorp acquired earlier…
DTC to tokenise real-world assets
DTC, a subsidiary of DTCC, has received a No-Action Letter from the Securities and Exchange Commission to offer, under federal securities laws and regulations, a new service to tokenise real-world, DTC-custodied assets in a controlled production environment. DTC anticipates beginning to roll out the service in the second half of 2026. The No-Action Letter authorises DTC…
UI launches active ETF platform
Universal Investment Group, the Germany-based fund services platform and Super ManCo, has launched its active ETF offering. The new platform enables asset managers and fund initiators to launch active UCITS ETFs with efficient time-to-market, regulatory certainty, and full operational support. Universal Investment is already working on customised active ETF structures as well as a white-label…
Maples advises ORIX on new PE fund
The Maples Group has advised and supported ORIX Corporation, a Japanese financial services firm, on the launch of a USD2.5bn Japan-targeted private equity fund, in partnership with Qatar Investment Authority. This is the first time that ORIX has launched a fund with capital from an international third-party investor for domestic private equity investment in Japan.…
GPF appoints StanChart in Thailand
The Government Pension Fund (GPF) in Thailand has appointed Standard Chartered as its domestic custodian, responsible for the safekeeping of GPF’s domestic assets and sub-funds. Under the five-year mandate, the bank will provide services including asset safekeeping, settlement, corporate actions, cash management, and portfolio valuation. The domestic assets under custody are approximately THB1trn (USD31.7bn). GPF…
FLIRTING WITH DISASTER (ICYMI)
State Street has no discernible strategy and a largely unimpressive senior management team – no wonder it is losing ground in almost every one of its chosen markets. What, exactly, has gone wrong at State Street? It has slipped far behind BNY – and, increasingly, Citi – in terms of innovation, product development and client…