https://www.scmp.com/rss/523549/feed The latest news and top stories on Julius Baer. A leading Swiss private banking group headquartered in Zurich, Julius Baer specialises in wealth management, investment advisory and financial services. They primarily serve high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth individuals, wealthy families and family offices globally, with a significant presence across Europe and Asia. Recognised as one of the world’s largest pure-play private banks, Julius Baer has received numerous industry awards for its... en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Zhang Shidong Zhang Shidong Ahead of China’s annual legislative meetings – typically a window into Beijing’s top-level policy agenda – this is the sixth entry in a series examining the complex economic recalibration driving China’s growth philosophy and its wide-ranging implications for local governments, financial investors and private enterprises. Stock investors will zero in on China’s annual parliamentary gathering this week for signals it could revive equity momentum, as fears of artificial intelligence-driven... https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3345073/investors-lock-npc-markets-seek-policy-lift-amid-ai-jitters?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3345073/investors-lock-npc-markets-seek-policy-lift-amid-ai-jitters?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Mar 2026 23:30:07 +0000 Enoch Yiu Enoch Yiu Gold, mahjong sets, fancy lai see packets and dinners with fireworks views are among the incentives Hong Kong banks are using to lure wealthy customers from the city and the mainland during the Lunar New Year, which kicks off on Tuesday. Hong Kong authorities estimated that as many as 1.43 million mainland visitors would cross the border during the holiday period, up 6 per cent from a year earlier. The Year of the Horse begins on Tuesday, but the mainland holiday started on Sunday and ends on... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3343663/hong-kong-banks-lure-wealthy-clients-gold-mahjong-sets-fireworks-during-holiday?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3343663/hong-kong-banks-lure-wealthy-clients-gold-mahjong-sets-fireworks-during-holiday?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 16 Feb 2026 05:00:09 +0000 Reuters Reuters Bitcoin plunged on Thursday, its decline accelerating amid weakening risk sentiment driven in part by volatility in precious ‍metals and a broad sell-off in tech shares. The world’s largest cryptocurrency fell to a low of US$66,675.12, its weakest since October 2024, a month before Republican Donald Trump won the US presidential election, having signalled his intention to support cryptocurrency on the campaign trail. It was last down 6.5 per cent at US$67,817. In total, the global digital market... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342555/bitcoin-dips-below-us70000-wiping-out-gains-trump-election-win-amid-warsh-fed-fears?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342555/bitcoin-dips-below-us70000-wiping-out-gains-trump-election-win-amid-warsh-fed-fears?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Feb 2026 13:32:17 +0000 Themis Qi Themis Qi China’s energy-drinks giant Eastroc Beverage neither rose nor fell in its debut in Hong Kong on Tuesday amid investor caution following regulatory scrutiny of poor-quality listing applications. Shares of the Shenzhen-based company, which makes an alternative to Red Bull, opened at HK$248, matching the offer price. They ended the day 1.5 per cent higher at HK$251.80. Eastroc raised HK$10.14 billion (US$1.3 billion) by issuing 40.89 million shares, the largest initial public offering (IPO) in the... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3342164/chinas-top-energy-drinks-maker-eastroc-matches-offer-price-hong-kong-debut?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3342164/chinas-top-energy-drinks-maker-eastroc-matches-offer-price-hong-kong-debut?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 03 Feb 2026 01:37:55 +0000 Themis Qi Themis Qi Chinese artificial intelligence-related stocks are expected to continue driving Hong Kong and mainland markets, though the pace of growth will slow, according to investment banks. Julius Baer projected Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng Index to reach 29,500 by year-end, which would represent a 12.8 per cent advance from Thursday’s close of 26,149. The Swiss bank set a 12-month target for the mainland’s CSI 300 Index at 5,100, which would be 7.6 per cent higher than Thursday’s close of... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3339265/chinese-ai-stocks-drive-market-gains-2026-though-pace-set-cool-banks-say?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3339265/chinese-ai-stocks-drive-market-gains-2026-though-pace-set-cool-banks-say?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 09 Jan 2026 05:00:10 +0000 Zhang Shidong Zhang Shidong The US assault on Venezuela jolted the global commodity markets, sending gold higher and reinforcing the long-term bearish view on crude oil as investors navigate rising geopolitical tensions to start 2026. The weekend military raid on the South American country – home to the world’s largest oil reserves – added more weight to a call by Wall Street firms including JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America that gold prices would touch US$5,000 an ounce by the end of the year. Franklin Templeton and... https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3338771/gold-oil-jolted-us-assault-venezuela-investors-recalibrate-amid-commodity-boom?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3338771/gold-oil-jolted-us-assault-venezuela-investors-recalibrate-amid-commodity-boom?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Jan 2026 09:30:10 +0000 Brian Wong Brian Wong Hong Kong prosecutors have dropped 21 charges against a 93-year-old plastic surgeon over a fatal botox injection in 2018, citing an earlier court ruling that he was unfit to stand trial because of dementia. Dr Franklin Li Wang-pong, who was released unconditionally by the High Court last year over the unlawful killing of a top banker, was separately indicted for allegedly misleading police and failing to maintain a register of dangerous drugs at his clinic after the botched procedure came to... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3338774/hong-kong-drops-charges-against-surgeon-ruled-unfit-face-fatal-botox-trial?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3338774/hong-kong-drops-charges-against-surgeon-ruled-unfit-face-fatal-botox-trial?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Jan 2026 09:19:03 +0000 Brian Wong Brian Wong The family of a top banker who died after receiving botox injections seven years ago has sued the Hong Kong clinic that offered the treatment, extending its founder’s legal woes just as a court earlier discharged him from a manslaughter trial. Franklin WP Li’s Surgery Limited, which operates the Tsim Sha Tsui clinic, has been accused of negligence and breach of duty of care over the use of a combination of sedatives and anaesthetics on Zoe Cheung Shuk-ling on November 11, 2018, according to a... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3332866/bankers-family-sues-clinic-hong-kong-plastic-surgeon-93-over-deadly-jabs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3332866/bankers-family-sues-clinic-hong-kong-plastic-surgeon-93-over-deadly-jabs?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 14 Nov 2025 12:33:20 +0000 Zhang Shidong Zhang Shidong Over the past week, investors hoping for an extension of this year’s blistering, tech-led run on Chinese equities have been poring over – and reading between the lines of – a draft of Beijing’s plan for economic and social development in the next five years. The blueprint emerged from a four-day Communist Party plenum that concluded on October 23, during which party chief Xi Jinping and the all-powerful Central Committee pledged to advance core technologies from semiconductors to artificial... https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3331036/chinese-stocks-investors-study-beijings-5-year-plan-hints-future-market-forces?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3331036/chinese-stocks-investors-study-beijings-5-year-plan-hints-future-market-forces?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 01 Nov 2025 02:00:09 +0000 Enoch Yiu Enoch Yiu Led by HSBC, Hong Kong’s major banks cut their prime lending rates – to a historic low of 5 per cent in some cases – on Thursday, further reducing funding costs to help reboot the city’s businesses and reduce the burden on mortgage borrowers. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) cut the base rate by a quarter point to 4.25 per cent on Thursday morning, hours after the US Federal Reserve pared its target rate by the same margin to a range of 3.75 per cent to 4 per cent during the seventh... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3330832/hong-kong-follows-us-quarter-point-interest-rate-cut-reduce-loans-cost-borrowers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3330832/hong-kong-follows-us-quarter-point-interest-rate-cut-reduce-loans-cost-borrowers?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Oct 2025 23:00:44 +0000 Brian Wong Brian Wong A 93-year-old Hong Kong plastic surgeon unlawfully killed a top banker by gross negligence during a botched Botox injection seven years ago, a jury has found. A seven-member High Court jury on Thursday reached a unanimous decision that found Dr Franklin Li Wang-pong had committed all the acts alleged in the original manslaughter charge before he was declared unfit to stand trial last month due to dementia. That unfitness means the ruling will not leave Li with a criminal record, but the court... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3330079/hong-kong-surgeon-unlawfully-killed-woman-botched-botox-procedure-jury-finds?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3330079/hong-kong-surgeon-unlawfully-killed-woman-botched-botox-procedure-jury-finds?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Oct 2025 09:56:06 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg A former wealth banker at Citigroup got the longest sentence in Singapore’s biggest money laundering case for his role in aiding the movement of illicit funds and obstructing justice. Wang Qiming, a former relationship manager at Citibank Singapore, was sentenced to 24 months in prison after he pleaded guilty to four out of 10 charges. The prosecutor sought 24 to 30 months' imprisonment while Wang’s defence lawyer argued for seven to 11 months. The prosecutor argued that Wang knew the importance... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3330041/singapore-jails-ex-citi-banker-over-role-us23-billion-money-laundering-scandal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3330041/singapore-jails-ex-citi-banker-over-role-us23-billion-money-laundering-scandal?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Oct 2025 07:44:12 +0000 Enoch Yiu Enoch Yiu Wealthy families from across the world use Hong Kong and Singapore as twin hubs to expand in Asia, preferring real estate and private direct investments for long-term growth, according to a report by Julius Baer on Tuesday. Hong Kong and Singapore are a natural choice for affluent families with regional ties or pan-Asian investments, according to the Swiss bank’s 2025 Family Barometer annual report that tracked 2,500 family office experts in Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Latin America about... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3329701/hong-kong-and-singapore-are-asias-twin-hubs-family-offices-julius-baer-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3329701/hong-kong-and-singapore-are-asias-twin-hubs-family-offices-julius-baer-says?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 21 Oct 2025 01:30:12 +0000 Zhang Shidong Zhang Shidong The recent slump in Chinese stocks, triggered by renewed trade tensions between Beijing and Washington, is prompting investors once more to consider the so-called “taco” trade, anticipating a potential repeat of the market pattern where global equities rebounded after an earlier tariff-induced sell-off. The term “taco” – a tongue-in-cheek acronym for “Trump always chickens out” – refers to the expectation among some investors that US President Donald Trump may eventually back down from his... https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3328821/china-us-tensions-fuel-hopes-return-taco-trade-time-extra-spice?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3328821/china-us-tensions-fuel-hopes-return-taco-trade-time-extra-spice?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 13 Oct 2025 09:49:09 +0000 Zhang Shidong Zhang Shidong Chinese investors sitting on 150 billion yuan (US$21 billion) worth of gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are likely to enjoy an extended run of a world-beating rally in the metal’s price amid robust demand, according to Swiss banks Julius Baer and Lombard Odier. Even after gaining almost 50 per cent this year, gold prices were set to rise to US$4,000 an ounce in the next 12 months, Julius Baer said, while Lombard Odier said the precious metal would rise to US$3,900. JPMorgan Private Bank was... https://www.scmp.com/business/markets/article/3327629/chinas-us21-billion-gold-etfs-shines-amid-metals-continued-rise?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/markets/article/3327629/chinas-us21-billion-gold-etfs-shines-amid-metals-continued-rise?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Oct 2025 23:30:08 +0000 Zhang Shidong,Yulu Ao Zhang Shidong,Yulu Ao Stunning gains in Chinese stocks are testing regulators’ ability to manage the ascent, as Beijing seeks to fulfil its long-standing goal of positioning the nation’s US$12 trillion equity market as a steady source of household income that can support consumer spending and economic growth. As the property market remains in the doldrums, eroding the wealth of Chinese investors who are sitting on a record 160 trillion yuan (US$22.5 trillion) in bank savings, the stock market has become a focus of... https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3325117/chinas-bull-run-tests-regulators-beijing-aims-guide-us12-trillion-stock-market?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3325117/chinas-bull-run-tests-regulators-beijing-aims-guide-us12-trillion-stock-market?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 11 Sep 2025 23:30:09 +0000 Enoch Yiu Enoch Yiu Hong Kong has become relatively cheaper for wealthy individuals over the last year, dropping from second to third on a list of the costliest world cities for high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs), according to Julius Baer. Singapore retained the title of the most expensive city, while London and Hong Kong swapped places from a year earlier, according to the 2025 Julius Baer Global Wealth and Lifestyle Report on Monday. The sixth annual study by the Swiss lender compared a basket of goods and... https://www.scmp.com/business/money/article/3318034/hong-kong-trails-singapore-london-priciest-city-rich-lifestyle-julius-baer-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/money/article/3318034/hong-kong-trails-singapore-london-priciest-city-rich-lifestyle-julius-baer-says?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 14 Jul 2025 01:30:12 +0000 Reuters Reuters Singapore is shortening the time it takes for wealthy clients to open private bank accounts and get tax incentives for their family offices, a minister said on Wednesday. The moves are designed to keep Singapore attractive as a hub for the finances of the wealthy even as it tightens regulations following a S$3 billion (US$2.34 billion) money laundering scandal in 2023. National Development Minister Chee Hong Tat, who is also the deputy chairman of the country’s central bank, said it used to take... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3317529/singapore-fast-tracks-bank-account-opening-ultra-rich?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3317529/singapore-fast-tracks-bank-account-opening-ultra-rich?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 09 Jul 2025 07:51:07 +0000