Nomura IWM North Asia head exits after only two years

Nomura International Wealth Management (IWM) has announced its North Asia head's departure, as well as changes in the Asia wealth team, according to an internal memo seen by AsianInvestor Wealth.

Rudolf Hitsch, who joined Nomura IWM in April 2023 as North Asia head, has departed. Hitsch reported directly to Ravi Raju, the Singapore-based head of Nomura IWM.

Prior to his tenure at the Japanese bank, Hitsch was the North Asia head at Citi Private Bank. Earlier in his career, he spent several years at Goldman Sachs Private Wealth Management in Hong Kong.

Following his departure, the bank has made several changes to its reporting structure.

Jesse Wu, who has taken on an expanded role along with being the group head for Greater China, will also oversee the Singapore-based North Asia team. In this expanded leadership setup, bankers including Jeff Liu, Cheery Hou, Jingting Shen and Nina Pei will report to Wu. In turn, Wu will report directly to Raju, the memo stated. 

The Japanese bank plans to hire around 30 to 35 wealth managers over the next two years for its Asia offices across financial hubs such as Hong Kong and Singapore, according to media reports last summer. Under the plan, it aims to reach $35 billion in assets under management for the international wealth segment by end-2025.