Citi Global Wealth APAC clients invest $5b in bonds in May-July

Majority of investments flowed to fixed income funds and hedge funds.

Citi Global Wealth clients in APAC have invested close to $5b in bonds across the bank’s wealth platform in just the past three months beginning May, the bank announced in a press release. 

The whopping investment flows was partly due to Citi’s “Bonds are Back” theme that the bank kicked off in late May. Under this, the bank’s over 2,000 relationship managers and private bankers in the region reached out to clients to assist them in making fixed income investments in bonds that offer rates significantly higher. 

Of the US$5bn or so invested across the bank’s platform, the bulk has been in fixed income funds including individual bonds or bond funds with a focus on investment grade high quality corporate bonds. 

ALSO READ: Citi unveils Sustainable Time Deposit solution in APAC

Private bank clients have also invested in hedge funds with a fixed income focus and also various fixed income structures.  

“The bulk of these investments were made via relationship  management channels, underlining how we offer our clients the best of both worlds, high tech and high touch. We continue to support our wealth clients with their strategic needs  and expect to see further inflows into fixed income in light of continued volatility,” said Angel Ng, head of Citi Global Wealth Asia  

The US dollar remains the main investment currency of choice of APAC investors, and Hong Kong and Singapore continue to be the bank’s wealth hubs.

ALSO READ: Salaries soar as Hong Kong banks engage in poaching war to hire & retain talent

As of August, Citi Global Wealth in Asia has around $200b in assets under management (AUM) and over 2 million clients across the region.