The private bank has confirmed that its Singapore branch CEO is retiring, while it also announced other changes in the region.

EFG Bank, part of Zurich-listed EFG International, has confirmed that Kong Eng Huat, its Singapore branch chief executive since December 2011, is retiring from the post at the end of 2018. 

The bank said Kong's successor will join on 26 July and that the identity of the new person will be “announced in due course". The current CEO will manage the Singapore operation until his successor is cleared by regulators. Prior to EFG, he was managing director, VantageCapital Consultancy, in Singapore, for one year, and prior to this, was head of Southeast Asia, South Asia and Australia, at Merrill Lynch. He held that role from 1988 to early 2010, according to his Linkedin profile.

Separately, EFG said it has appointed Oliver Balmelli as the head of private banking for Singapore and Richard Straus as the head of private banking for Hong Kong. Balmelli was previously EFG’s co-head of private banking for Singapore. Straus, an industry veteran with over 30 years of experience, joins this week from Bank Julius Baer and he reports to Kees Stoute, who is the CEO of EFG Hong Kong.

The changes come after EFG International announced a number of structural changes to its leadership, such as in its Swiss operations.