Making Asia the seat for a top investment banking role with global responsibilities is a clear statement of intent for JPMorgan, which named Jeff Urwin as its new head of the region this week.
In a similar vein, Gary Cohn and Lloyd Blankfein of Goldman Sachs both travelled to the region again this month, visiting the bank’s operations and talking to regulators about the development of capital markets particularly in China.
Attracted by the region’s rapid growth, fuelled by China’s rise as an economic superpower, global and local investment banks have spent heavily on Asian operations, opening offices in new countries and hiring thousands of people.