Fell in love with Asia on holiday, now I want to move my S&T career to HK/Singapore. Thoughts??
Hey fellow Monkeys,
I'm currently working as an S&T analyst at one of the French banks in Europe (think SocGen/BNP). I recently spent a month travelling around East Asia and completely fell in love with the culture, and now I'm seriously dreaming about trying to move out to Hong Kong / Singapore to work in markets there. Wanted to tap the collective wisdom here. Has anyone actually made the jump after doing some years in Europe? I'm curious how you pulled it off in practice: did you transfer internally within the same bank, or did you have to recruit externally once you were out there? Any color on how doable it really is without speaking Mandarin would be hugely appreciated.
Beyond the logistics, I'd love to hear what life is actually like as a foreigner in these places. How's the work culture compared to a European trading floor, how did you find settling in, and be honest, would you do it again if you had the choice? I'm a firm believer that APAC is where a lot of the future growth is going to be. Any advice, war stories, or things you wish you'd known would mean a lot!
Making the jump to Hong Kong or Singapore for a career in S&T is an exciting prospect, but there are some key considerations to keep in mind based on the most helpful WSO content:
1. Language Barriers and Market Realities
2. Internal Transfer vs. External Recruitment
3. Work Culture and Lifestyle
4. Settling In as a Foreigner
5. Strategic Advice
Would You Do It Again?
Many professionals who’ve made the move to APAC highlight the unique opportunities and growth potential in the region. However, they also emphasize the importance of understanding the challenges, particularly the localization trends and intense work culture. If you’re passionate about the region and willing to adapt, it can be a rewarding experience.
Good luck with your plans! If you’re serious about making the move, start networking and exploring opportunities now. APAC is dynamic, but preparation is key to making the transition successfully.
Sources: https://www.wallstreetoasis.com/forum/school/shall-i-take-usd-160k-loan-to-attend-wharton?customgpt=1, The future of Hong Kong high finance, Moved to Japan and failed – a “wolfy”(WSO user) story, The future of Hong Kong high finance
A tale as old as time but 25 years too late imho
I care to differ. Have you been to Peel St recently? It’s like 80% 20-25yr old expats. Would welcome any and all from abroad to spend a few years in HK - highest pay (except nyc), lowest tax!
Would be interesting to know why you think it is too late now!
Having worked and known many close friends in late 90s-late oughts HK it really was the expat heyday. Competition was not as fierce, it really was pan-Asia focused so not having the language was not really a ding, resourcing wise employers viewed it as the Asian century, and non work environment was different…sure you couldn’t transfer back home easily but it wasn’t necessary as could see easy full career runway or at least to become $ independent. IMHO despite still solid pay and low taxes all of those have gone against expats since then….tons of 20-25 expats in LKF doesn’t really change that as that bid will always be there
No lang requirement if you're in T. But you will need Mandarin if you are in S (for HK).
Untrue, but will help. Am at BB S&T in HK, not many people from analyst to MD in sales who don't speak a lick of Cantonese nor Mandarin.
However the commenter is right insofar as it does narrow your options slightly.
Adding my two cents. I'm an S&T analyst at one of the note issuing banks with no Chinese / Canto at all, so I agree it's possible, though it'll limit your lateral options. FI sales is usually done in English, but corp sales would depend on the type of corps your bank usually covers. Been trying to move to a more international bank but getting interviews have been tough (dms open though lmao). Being able to speak French hasn't helped much. At least the social scene in HK is really really good, there's no shortage of events and interesting people to meet though they're usually other foreigners. Getting close with locals is tougher since they already have their own social circles, but this is true for any city in the world (speaking from experience...)
Dont ppl who cant speak mandarin/canto speak japanese/korean and they cover respective regional clients?
Worked in HK trading for ~2 yrs. Haven't worked in EMEA so can't give direct comparison but here's my 2 cents.
first of all, yes no lang requirement if you are in T. You'll realize there are tons of French Traders in European banks. I worked at 2 EUropean BB at HK offices, and there were many senior traders who were french, and seen many french juniors relocate here. One of my former teammate was French as well. I don't think the logistics would be an issue, given you are already in the French bank and they have a big presence in HK/SG.
HK is like the global hub of APAC and you'll see many foreigners here, and living there as a foreigner should be very fine, as most people here speaks english.
Work culture it really varies by who ur manager is, but generally I find it bit more tense compared to where I work in especially for the juniors since you'd be compared to Asian who are used to grind hard since they were younglings, but I don't think you'd be stressed out by this given you already made it to this place.
Feel free to ask me more questions, but overall I had an amazing experience there and would recommend anyone especially in their junior yrs who are considering relocating to HK, to take a shot. (not to mention the low tax rates lol)
I’m from Hawaii so have more than the usual amount of expat friends in Asia.
In Hong Kong, check out the American Club restaurant (find a friend who’s a member) in Central, Peel Street to go out, and Blondies for happy hour. I did that all on my trip this summer. My expat friends were all in trading. Another friend owned a US tax preparation company. And, another is in the film industry (he says bring something to the table that makes everyone money, everything else is secondary including language).
In Guangzhou, I met a Nigerian in the fashion industry in my hotel lobby. He’s been there for over 20 years.
A few other friends have US department of defense civilian jobs or state department jobs and are working in South Korea or Japan; their spouses get to enjoy being an expat also. As a kid, I lived in Seoul (my dad worked for the Army). Usually rotations are 2 to 5 years max.
I want to go back to live in Asia again, but since I’m in my 40’s with kids, decided to stay in US until they are out of the house. My friend suggested if you’re a resident of Hong Kong for 7 years or longer, Hong Kong universities are heavily subsidized (like $7,000 per year at Hong Kong University, which a lot of the curriculum is taught in English).
In Tokyo, there are some English speaking universities that I’ve met many foreign students (I was invited to give lectures there).
15-20 years ago, I had friends working in Seoul and Tokyo working for Google, Samsung and LG. Always moving to a new city every 5 years.
I agree it is harder to add value in Asia as a westerner today.
Even in sales you will find quite a few who don't have any local language skills. Depends on the client. More common facing off to hedge funds vs corporates for example.
That said though you will also see the opposite. Lots of Koreans who grew up in China, went to international school there, and can speak like 3+ languages natively.
Anyway much easier being internal. I'd go for it. See the world. I had a chance to work in Tokyo early in my career but stayed in NYC instead. Regretted it. Its a bit different coming over at mid career.
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