Hub / regional bank
Bank of Singapore
OCBC's private bank is the NRI sector's talent mint — it seeds rivals' Global South Asia desks, then rebuilds its own.
Dedicated NRI team
Yes
Strategy tenure
—
India onshore arc
Never onshore
Hubs
Singapore, Dubai, Hong Kong
Bank of Singapore, the pure-play private-banking arm of Singapore's OCBC, runs an incumbent 'Global South Asia' franchise covering NRI/UHNW South Asian clients — and has become the single biggest talent donor in the offshore-Indian wealth race. Its scale is real (group AUM cleared US$145 billion in 2025, up more than 20%, anchored partly by the 2016 acquisition of Barclays' Singapore and Hong Kong wealth business), but from 2023 to 2026 it lost senior bankers to nearly every rival standing up an NRI desk: Vikram Malhotra to 360 ONE Global, Aditya Kaul to UBS, Sandesh Assao to RBC, Nikhil Jha to Barclays, and — within days of each other in August 2026 — DIFC chief Ranjit Khanna to EFG and Global South Asia market head Harjeet Singh to HSBC. Under market group head Zubin Dabu it is rebuilding the bench: Bikram Sen (ex-UBS, who 'led the successful migration of the Credit Suisse NRI business') rejoined as Global South Asia market head in October 2025, joined by team heads Ankit Swaika (ex-Julius Baer) and Yatish Aron and hires from HSBC, Julius Baer and UBS.
Why it matters
Bank of Singapore is the involuntary academy of the NRI wealth race: nearly every rival that stood up a Global South Asia desk in 2023-26 — 360 ONE, UBS, EFG, HSBC, Barclays, RBC — staffed it in part with a Bank of Singapore banker. That its DIFC chief (Khanna) and its Global South Asia market head (Harjeet Singh) exited within days of each other in August 2026 shows how exposed a people-based franchise is to poaching, even as group AUM cleared US$145 billion. The counter-move under Zubin Dabu — re-hiring Bikram Sen and importing team heads from Julius Baer, HSBC and UBS — is a bet that the bench can be rebuilt faster than it is raided.
By the numbers
>US$145bn
Bank of Singapore AUM in 2025, having surpassed its 2023 target; AUM grew over 20% in 2025 (UHNW +25%, financial-intermediary +30%)
OCBC Annual Report 2025 — Private Banking · Dec 2025 · self-reported
US$13bn / US$227.5m
AUM transferred and price for Barclays' Singapore + Hong Kong wealth business (2016) — the deal that scaled the franchise
Bank of Singapore media release, 28 Nov 2016 · Nov 2016 · self-reported
The journey
Global South Asia market head Harjeet Singh leaves for HSBC
Singh joined HSBC Private Bank as senior desk head for Global India in Singapore after nine years at Bank of Singapore, most recently 'managing director and market head for the Global South Asia business'. His exit, days after Khanna's, stripped Bank of Singapore of a second senior Global South Asia leader in the same fortnight.
DIFC chief Ranjit Khanna leaves for EFG's Dubai Advisory Office
Khanna, Bank of Singapore's 'DIFC Chief Executive, where he also headed the private banking business serving clients across the Middle East, Europe and Global South Asia', with more than 30 years of international private banking experience, was named CEO of EFG International's Dubai Advisory Office effective 26 August 2026 — the loss of the franchise's Middle East / Global South Asia leader.
Bench rebuild under Zubin Dabu: Ankit Swaika (ex-Julius Baer) plus hires from HSBC, JB and UBS
Bank of Singapore appointed Ankit Swaika (based in Singapore, at Julius Baer since the start of 2017) as team head, Global South Asia, reporting to Zubin Dabu; multiple reports give his effective date as 2 November 2026. Its wider 2025-26 Global South Asia build, per The Asset, also brought in Yatish Aron (team head, 12 October 2026), Priyanka Maheshwari (from HSBC Private Bank), Dinesh Chaudhary (from Julius Baer) and Mitika Patel (from UBS) — importing rivals' NRI talent as fast as its own is poached.
WealthBriefingAsia, 25 Aug 2026 · The Asset, 24 Aug 2026 (bench roster read via search summary this session; direct fetch returned 403)
Nikhil Jha leaves to become Barclays' MD & Head of NRI in Singapore
Jha, a Bank of Singapore team head 'managing international client portfolios', joined Barclays Private Bank as MD & Head of NRI, Singapore, with more than 20 years of private-banking experience (earlier Deutsche Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank). Barclays' internal memo: 'Nikhil will lead the continued buildout of our NRI franchise.'
Sandesh Assao leaves for RBC's new Global South Asia team in Singapore
RBC Wealth Management stood up a dedicated Global South Asia team in Singapore, appointing Sandesh Assao as executive director, senior relationship manager. Assao 'has over 20 years of industry experience, having previously worked at Bank of Singapore, Nomura and EFG International'. Alongside him RBC hired Abhijit Shetty (MD & team head) and Sudarshan V Athreya.
Bikram Sen rejoins as market head, Global South Asia and International — the rebuild begins
Sen returned to Bank of Singapore effective 21 October 2025 as market head for Global South Asia and International, reporting to Zubin Dabu, market group head for Global South Asia and International. He arrived from UBS, where he 'led the successful migration of the Credit Suisse NRI business and built a thriving post-migration franchise'. Ranjit Khanna (then head of private banking Europe and Middle East, and CEO of the DIFC branch): 'We are delighted to welcome Sen back to the Bank of Singapore family.'
Vikram Malhotra leaves to co-found and lead 360 ONE Global
Malhotra — Bank of Singapore's 'global market head for Global South Asia and Middle East' — departed to become co-founder and CEO of 360 ONE Global, the offshore platform launched by 360 ONE (ex-IIFL Wealth) with hubs in Singapore and Dubai. The first marquee exit that established Bank of Singapore as the sector's talent mint.
Completes acquisition of Barclays' Singapore + Hong Kong wealth business
Bank of Singapore completed its purchase of Barclays' wealth and investment management business in Singapore and Hong Kong: US$13 billion of AUM transferred, priced at 1.75% of transferred AUM for US$227.5 million, with more than 60 bankers added and the majority of the combined Barclays relationship-manager workforce joining. The deal lifted Bank of Singapore's total AUM from US$62 billion (30 Sep 2016) to more than US$75 billion. (Barclays retained its India onshore private bank.)
Connections
Featured in: The Credit Suisse collapse seeded the modern NRI arms race · Bank of Singapore: the NRI sector's involuntary academy
10 sources · all linked
OCBC Annual Report 2025 — Private Banking · Bank of Singapore media release, 28 Nov 2016 · Private Banker International, 27 Aug 2026 · finews.com, 25 Aug 2026 · WealthBriefingAsia, 25 Aug 2026 · The Asset, 24 Aug 2026 (bench roster read via search summary this session; direct fetch returned 403) · WealthBriefing, 9 Jul 2026 · Global Private Banker, 3 Jun 2026 · The Asian Banker press release, 23 Oct 2025 · WealthBriefingAsia, 8 Sep 2023