Eastspring, the Asia asset management arm of Prudential’s Asian operations, said Chen’s position was a new one, and had been created "to address the growing responsibilities of our investment team".
At Eastspring Investments Berhad, Chen will be responsible for leading its investment management team, consisting of almost 100 employees, as well as closely monitoring the firm’s stable of investments, the company said in a statement issued this morning in Kuala Lumpur.
Prior to coming to Eastspring, Chen had been director of investments at Kenanga Investors Berhad, a Kuala Lumpur-based fund manager wholly owned by Kenanga Investment Bank Berhad. His 23-year career in the investment industry included a stint as chief investment officer for Allianz Life Insurance Malaysia Berhad, among other roles.
Chen reports to Eastspring Investments Berhad chief executive Lynn Cheah Lee Ling.
Eastspring’s range of investment products includes unit trust funds and customised portfolio mandates for corporations and institutions. It also manages government and pension fund assets that were worth approximately MYR21bn ($6.8bn,£4.4bn) at the end of September.
In addition to Malaysia, Eastspring Investments operates in Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Vietnam and the United States, and has joint venture operations in India, China and Hong Kong.