​Swiss bank Credit Suisse announced that it has hired a new head of private banking (PB)operations for mainland China as part of its plans to become the top foreign provider of high-end wealth management services to customers in the country.

Starting in April, Wang Jing, formerly the head of PB operations at the China Merchants Bank(CMB), will oversee Credit Suisse’s onshore wealth management operations and mainly focus on helping the lender reach its private banking ambitions in China, which is now integral to the health and wealth of the PB sector. Recent research by the bank highlighted global wealth expanded by 2.6% year-on-year, or $9.4 trillion, to a total $360 trillion in 2018; China accounted for $1.9 trillion of the net gain. Wealth-X’s latest billionaire census, published in May, counted 285 Chinese dollar billionaires with a total net worth of $996 billion, second only to the US (705 billionaires; cumulative wealth of $3 trillion).

Wang’s new role will give her direct access to the lender’s global PB network composed of 3,800 relationship managers across 50 offices. In her previous role at Shenzhen-based CMB, Wang transformed the bank into China’s best onshore wealth manager. Last year, CMB won 12 China awards in Euromoney’s annual Private Banking and Wealth Management Survey, including best overall provider of onshore PB services. Credit Suisse took the award for world’s best bank for wealth management.

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