Mignonne Cheng was most recently the Asia chair of BNP Paribas Wealth Management.

Mignonne Cheng, a senior private banking figure working in the sector for more than 40 years, is joining Bank J Safra Sarasin as chair for Asia.

Cheng was most recently the Asia chair of BNP Paribas Wealth Management. During her 30 years at the French firm, she served in senior roles including general manager for the Chinese division, head of North Asia and chief executive of BNP Paribas Hong Kong branch. In 2010, she was appointed chairman and CEO of BNP Paribas Wealth Management for Asia-Pacific.

Prior to joining BNP Paribas in 1990, she spent 18 years with Chase Manhattan Bank Hong Kong branch, where she assumed various senior positions, including head of the credit department, group head of the commercial banking group and head of corporate finance, mergers and acquisition, and investment banking.

Cheng, who has also been active in public roles, such as membership of the Banking Advisory Committee chaired by The Honourable John Tsang, ex-Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, also served as a member of The Consultative Committee of the Basic Law of the HKSAR between 1985 and 1989. 

“Mignonne is a well-respected and seasoned banker and financial professional. She will bring a wealth of experience to Bank J Safra Sarasin in Asia, which will be greatly beneficial for us to further scale up and meet our growth plans in this important region. Her depth and breadth of knowledge in the industry will bring tremendous values and insights further strengthening our client franchise in the ultra-high net worth segment in Asia,” Jacob J Safra, chairman of J Safra Sarasin Group, said. 

As reported a year ago, the firm appointed Enid Yip to join its board of directors and Andy Chai as new chief executive for Asia. Also, Vinay Gandhi was appointed as deputy CEO, Asia.