Julius Baer’s new deputy chief of Asia and head of North Asia Kaven Leung, started his role in Hong Kong last week, global chief executive Boris Collardi confirmed to this publication.

His appointment, though announced in November, was not due until 19 April. Sources close to the situation said that he was able to negotiate with his former employer to leave early.

The 25-year private banking veteran joined Julius Baer from Goldman Sachs where he was co-head of the Asia ex-Japan private banking business. Previously, he worked at Citigroup for two decades, most recently as chief executive of global wealth management Asia.

He reports directly to Thomas Meier, chief executive of the Swiss bank’s Asia business. He takes over the role being managed by Meier on an interim basis. Meier took up the job temporarily after Andrea Benenati quit the bank in 2010 to found an independent asset manager in Switzerland.

The extra management firepower will be a welcome fillip to Julius Baer, which is ramping up its efforts in the region it calls its second home market. Last November the bank hired a team of eight en masse from Bank Sarasin’s Asia division, headed by Elina So. It also formed a joint venture with Macquarie's Asia-Pacific business last year, which included absorbing its private client division into its ranks. 

Yesterday at a journalist briefing in Singapore, Collardi said a focus was growing the bank’s Asia assets under management from 15 per cent currently. He added that a large chunk of the SFr10 billion ($10.8 billion) of new money that flowed into the bank last year was from Asia, without breaking out figures.