[26 September 2003]
Wealth Management Institute offers Asia-centric and practice-oriented education opportunities

The Wealth Management Institute (“WMI”), the first center of excellence for wealth management education in Asia, held its official launch today. WMI provides wealth management professionals with a unique combination of academic learning and practical experience, adopting an Asian focus complemented by a global perspective. Being the focal point for continued education and research, WMI aims to enhance standards of professionalism in the field and establish Singapore as the Asian hub for wealth management.

The inception of WMI is a concrete follow up on the Singapore Economic Review Committee’s recommendations announced in September 2002 to develop Singapore as a regional leader in wealth management and a premier education hub. Responding to the demand of the wealth management industry, the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (“GIC”) and Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited will play a catalytic role in this initiative, with the support of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

WMI works closely with its significant academic partners, which include the Singapore Management University (SMU), the Swiss Banking School (SBS) and the Association of Investment Management and Research (AIMR), to offer a spectrum of programmes that would enhance professionalism and meet the needs of a dynamic wealth management industry.

In partnership with WMI, the wealth management industry players will take on an active role to underscore the needs, develop the content and co-teach the programmes. WMI’s industry partners, including The Citigroup Private Bank, Credit Suisse Private Banking, DBS, HSBC Republic, JPMorgan Private Bank and UBS Wealth Management as well as institutional fund managers like PIMCO, Schroders Investment Management amongst others, will be instrumental in WMI’s emphasis on practice-oriented education through their offer of internship opportunities and scholarship awards to participants in WMI’s Masters of Science in Wealth Management programme.

Mr Ng Kok Song, Chairman WMI, said, “WMI is motivated by a fast-moving industry that is seeing an increased demand for professionally trained wealth managers. I am confident that over time, we will establish a reputation as a global leader in the wealth management education and distinguish ourselves by the highest quality in student intake, faculty teaching and internship training.”

WMI’s programmes will cater to the needs of both senior and junior practitioners in the wealth management industry. Its flagship programme, Masters of Science in Wealth Management (MWM), will be conducted by SMU, in collaboration with SBS. MWM is a specialised degree that covers the entire value chain of wealth management from asset management, sale and distribution of financial products, to financial advice. A key distinguishing feature will be its on-the-ground experience, internships and scholarships supported by leading wealth management companies. A module of the Masters programme will be conducted in Switzerland, where the participants would have the opportunities to interact with practitioners and industry players beyond the region.
WMI will provide the opportunities for individuals to upgrade their skills and competence through its series of short courses. These short courses are aimed at teaching the diverse aspects of the professions at various levels, including product knowledge, finance/banking, asset allocation, ethics, compliance and legal issues, and selling and marketing techniques.
WMI will also be developing platforms, such as the Global Investors Workshop -Asia and the Fund Management/Private Banking Retreat, for bringing together professionals and practitioners for networking and discussion of strategic global issues, and trends related to the wealth management industry.

WMI aims to attract talents, upgrade professional competence and contribute to the growth of the wealth management industry in Singapore and the region.