The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has issued a type 1 (dealing in securities) licence to New York Life Investment Management, which manages $500bn (£383bn, €451bn) in assets globally.
The multi-boutique asset manager will now be able to sell mutual funds to clients, according to SFC regulations.
But the firm has not received a type 4 (advising on securities) licence, which is required to provide investment advice, or a type 9 (asset management) licence, which is necessary to manage assets on a discretionary basis.
The SFC noted that New York Life IM can only provide services to professional investors.
In total, 21 firms received licences to conduct investment-regulated activities in Hong Kong in November, according to the regulator’s records.
Headed by wn-BNPP manager
In Hong Kong, New York Life IM’s registered responsible officers are Tino Moorrees and Yoshiaki Asada.
Moorrees is the firm’s Hong Kong-based head of Asia business development – a role he assumed in February 2018, according to his Linkedin profile.
Moorrees was formerly BNP Paribas Asset Management’s chief executive for Hong Kong and head of sales and marketing for Asia for three years until 2017.
At the time, the firm said he left to pursue other opportunities and he was replaced by Rakesh Vengayil, who also assumed the role of deputy chief executive for Asia Pacific.
Moorrees joined BNPP AM in 2010, first as chief executive for Indonesia and then chief executive for Japan.
Elsewhere in Asia, New York Life IM has an office in Tokyo, which opened in 2016 to service institutional investors in Japan.
Separately, parent insurance group New York Life was formerly set up in Hong Kong until 2010, when Ace Group, now Chubb Life, acquired the operations in the SAR and in Korea.
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