US-based investment bank Morgan Stanley is looking to ramp up its offering for Chinese entrepreneurs looking to launch family offices in Singapore.

PBI has found family offices in Singapore and Hong Kong are opening in record numbers as demand increases among wealthy expatriates.

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Morgan Stanley Asia wealth head Vincent Chui said in an interview: “The city is a key business hub for China entrepreneurs, as well as a family office nexus.”

The bank’s Singapore wealth unit is currently led by Wee Yee Yeong, who was recruited recently.

Plans are also on to hire more relationship managers in Singapore as well as Hong Kong, Chui stated.

In a separate Bloomberg Television interview, Chui revealed that Singapore is favoured over Hong Kong as an ideal base to establish family offices.

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According to Chui, the affluent operate more on an individual basis in Hong Kong.

Chui further stated that IPOs managed by Morgan Stanley made the affluent wealthier.

“We would like to position ourselves as a firm-wide partner to our customers,” he stated.

During IPOs, the bank brings in bankers from the investment banking and wealth space to help clients gain insight on the impact of the listing on their finances and family requirements, Chui noted.

The bank is said to have managed over 20 offshore IPOs for Chinese private firms in the previous year.

Private banks in the region are beefing up their family office departments ahead of such demand. Citigroup, Credit Suisse, HSBC, and UBS have all said they are looking to expand their family office services in 2019.