Recruiting in China

Bank of China, China's second largest lender, has made seven senior hires for its new Swiss private banking office, with an emphasis of coverage on the Middle East and Latin America.

BoC became the first Chinese bank to open a private banking office in Switzerland last November, offering private banking and a fund management service.

The new hires were detailed in a press release from the bank. Fatima Al Arabi joins as head of institutional clients, the Middle East. Mohamad Bleik joins as co-head of private banking, in the Gulf Cooperation Council. Teresa Cheung-Constantin, joins as a senior private banker.

Jean-Pierre De Barro joins as head of sales. Julien Froidevaux is head of the independent managers department. Jose Luis Piccinini joins as head of institutional clients, Latin America. Daniel Alexander Rieber, joins as senior private banker, Latin America.

The new hires report to Jacques Mechelany, the former chief executive of Heritage Fund Management, who last November was hired to head the new private bank.

The private bank is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bank of China (UK), which is itself a subsidiary of the Bank of China group.

A spokesperson for the bank did not immediately return calls.