A top UBS dealmaker in Hong Kong is now working for Jack Ma
Frank Sun, the former head of Asia healthcare investment banking at UBS, has re-emerged at Yunfeng Capital, a private equity firm co-founded by Alibaba chairman Jack Ma.
He joined Yunfeng Capital in Hong Kong last month as a managing director for healthcare, according to his online profile. Sun left UBS back in May, along with two other senior bankers, having spent 11 years at the firm, latterly as an MD.
Given the seniority of Sun’s new role, it is likely that Ma approved his hire, says a Hong Kong headhunter. Billionaire Ma, ranked by Forbes as the richest man in Asia, established Shanghai-headquartered Yunfeng Capital in 2010 along with David Yu, the founder of display advertising company Target Media.
Sun is not the only person to have left a global bank to join a Jack Ma-backed firm in Hong Kong recently. As we reported in November, Goldman Sachs executive director Yali Zhu moved to Yunfeng Financial Group, a financial technology company part owned by Ma's Yunfeng Capital, as its head of brokerage.
Healthcare – Sun’s sector – is a focus for Yunfeng Capital, which also invests in internet, technology, media, financial services, logistics, and consumer companies. Along with their counterparts covering technology, mainland healthcare bankers are now particularly sought after by PE firms in Hong Kong. Rising middle-class incomes and an ageing population in China are boosting demand for medical services and attracting more PE investment into hospital, pharmaceutical and other health-related businesses.
Some bankers are even joining these companies in business development roles. In October, Jeff Chen, head of technology investment banking for Asia Pacific at HSBC, moved to Tencent-backed online healthcare firm WeDoctor as its chief strategy officer after 14 years in banking.
Sun’s hire caps a busy few weeks for senior bank-to-buy-side moves in Asia. So far in January, we have reported on Wai Yip, co-head of Asia ex-Japan credit sales at Goldman Sachs, joining Canyon Partners in Hong Kong, and Credit Suisse director Woon Young Jeong moving to Millennium Management.
Yunfeng Capital’s recruitment of Sun is also a further sign of the growing clout of Chinese firms in the Hong Kong job market. Earlier this month, for example, Ping An Insurance poached Jason Chiu, HSBC Global Asset Management’s head of business risk for Asia, as its new head of risk management.
Prior to UBS, Sun spent a year working in healthcare equity research at Morgan Stanley in New York.
Image credit: subman, Getty
