Increased commitment to Bahrain and the region
Robeco, one of the leading European asset managers with a global presence, announced recently that the Central Bank of Bahrain has approved Douglas Hansen-Luke as its new CEO for the Middle East. Aside from this, Robeco has also transferred Ali Enayati from Rotterdam to augment their management team as General Manager and to cover International Private Banks.
Douglas Hansen-Luke previously worked in senior positions for ABN AMRO Asset Management in Asia, Europe and Saudi Arabia. Robeco continues to view its Bahrain representative office as the centre of its operations in the Middle East.
Previously, Ali Enayati was Head of International Structuring at Robeco Alternative Investments and has ten years of extensive experience in the Dutch finance sector, while operating on a global scale.
"Robeco offers a wide range of capabilities suitable for banks and institutional investors with market leading products available for equity, fixed income and alternative strategies. In the Middle East's large and fast growing markets, we believe our 75 years of investment experience will give us an edge in fulfilling clients' needs," said Frank Kusse, member of the board of the Robeco Group responsible for international operations.
"I am delighted to be able to represent Robeco in this very dynamic region and look forward to continuing the tradition of trust and partnership which Robeco maintains with several key Gulf institutions" said Douglas Hansen-Luke. "As a wholly-owned subsidiary of triple A rated Rabobank, with an independent investment policy, investors already trust Robeco's financial expertise. Going forward I also believe that Robeco's skills in sustainable investing will further match the traditional values of clients in the Arab world."
The previous Country Manager in Bahrain, David Gibson-Moore, remains in the Kingdom and has been appointed to the Robeco Middle East Advisory Board. As he says, "In this region where relationships are so important, Robeco and I wish to assure continuity of service and performance to the clients."
Robeco is planning to serve institutional clients from Bahrain and meet demand from private banks through partnerships in key markets.
Robeco provides investment solutions to approximately 1.5 million private investors, over 700 institutional clients and 100 distribution partners around the world. Robeco has a global presence, with offices and/or specialised investment teams in Europe, the United States, the Middle East and Asia.
About Robeco
Robeco, established in Rotterdam in 1929, offers investment products and services to institutional and private investors worldwide. It has EUR 146 billion in assets under management (at 31 December 2007).
The product range encompasses equity and fixed-income investments, money-market and real-estate funds and alternative investments, such as private equity, hedge funds and structured products. The various strategies are managed from Rotterdam (head office), Paris, Boston and New York.
To service institutional and third-party distribution clients, Robeco has offices in Bahrain, Belgium, Germany, France, Hong Kong, Japan, Luxembourg, Poland, Spain, the United States and Switzerland. Robeco has a bank license in Belgium, France and the Netherlands, where it can sell its products straight to private clients.
Transtrend in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, and Harbor Capital Advisors in Chicago, USA are part of the Robeco group. Furthermore, Robeco holds interests in SAM Group (64%) in Zurich, Switzerland; Canara Robeco Investment Management (49%) in Mumbai, India; and AIM (40%) in Rijmenam, Belgium.
Robeco is part of Rabobank Group, one of the few retail banks with the highest credit ratings from Moody's and Standard & Poor's. Furthermore, within the banking sector, Rabobank has the highest sustainability cluster score, which is used to assess an organization's people and environmental friendliness.
Ronald Florisson, Robeco Corporate Communications
Office: +31 - 10 - 224 28 10
Mobile: +31 - 653 - 831 586
E-mail: ronald.florisson@robeco.com