Assistant Manager - Investment Operations

About FWD Group

FWD Group (1828.HK) is a pan-Asian life and health insurance business that serves approximately 40 million customers across 10 markets, including BRI Life in Indonesia. FWD’s customer-led and tech-enabled approach aims to deliver innovative propositions, easy-to-understand products and a simpler insurance experience. Established in 2013, the company operates in some of the fastest-growing insurance markets in the world with a vision of changing the way people feel about insurance. FWD Group is listed on the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange under the stock code 1828.

For more information, please visit www.fwd.com

FWD Technology and Innovation Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., known as FWD TIM, was established in late 2019. Strategically located in Kuala Lumpur, FWD TIM serves as a pivotal shared service location within FWD Group, providing services to multiple markets across the Group. FWD TIM houses a diverse and talented workforce focused on essential business and technology services such as information security, cloud operations, IT solutions delivery, digital and data, actuarial, finance, investments, and customer service, among many others. FWD TIM is dedicated to drive and deliver operational excellence and efficiency, foster innovation and ensure regulatory compliance across all business functions as well as maintain a competitive edge in the market.

PURPOSE

• Hold work supervisory responsibility by overseeing, guiding and coaching the junior members for day-to-day Group Investment Operations activities and key initiatives (i.e. investment operations daily BAU, Bloomberg AIM data feed)
• Lead and manage the entire trade lifecycle from front to back operations to achieve the necessary compliance, expected efficiency and effectiveness - including trade instructions, trade matching, trade settlement, corporate actions, cash & position management, collateral management, and reconciliation.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

Investment Operations

• Guide, review and manage the team’s investment portfolio reconciliations among custodian, fund manager and Bloomberg to ensure completeness and accuracy.
• Assist the Senior Manager to oversee, manage and deliver the expected quality and service of own work and junior members; network/navigate within the organization in order to troubleshoot escalated issues and bring appropriate closure.
• Perform and review day-to-day trade settlement, pre & post trade support, activities for Group Entities and assigned business units.
• Manage Group Office regional projects and transformation initiatives in Group Entities and assigned business units when necessary.
• Contribute effectively to support the cash and currency operations for Group Entity and assigned business units’ investment teams by ensuring timely execution of required funding activities.
• Work with counterparts to establish and manage the ISDA and CSA agreements in support of the derivative program.
• Prepare bank and custodian KYC requests, regulatory and audit requests as required and ensure the relevant compliances and adherence.
• Perform and review alternative asset transaction entry.
• Perform and review all derivative trade confirmations by verifying the trade details based on record from front office, seeking for authorized signature and liaising with counterparty to complete trade confirmation.
• Perform and review calculation, issuance, agreement, and settlement of collaterals for margin calls from and to counterparties.
• Manage the overall collateral holdings, including monitoring and reconciling cash balances in custody accounts, monthly interest accruals and settlements.
• Serve as primary point of escalation in projects and implementation of identify and implement, lead, and evaluate system testing, and train staff on new technology enhancement.
• Act as process and SOPs SME to business units and Group Investments
• Actively identify opportunities and contribute to the design, development and continuous improvement of the Group Investment’s group-wide operational guidelines, service technology solutions, baselines and controls.
• Manage the relationships and liaise with internal or external parties to ensure all investment related transactions are provided timely and accurately.
• Review and approve transactions.
• Ad-hoc duties as assigned.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

• Number of trade processing errors.
• Adhere investment portfolio reconciliations on time.
• Assigned business units and Group Office reconciliations have no unknown breaks.
• Able to assist SM to monitor the daily operations as well as to ensure smooth month-end closing.

EXTERNAL & INTERNAL CONTACTS

Internal:

• Group Investment Operations Team
• Business units’ Investment Operations team
• Group Investments
• ICOE Investment Operations

External:

• Asset Managers
• Bloomberg
• Custodians
• Brokers
• Collateral manager

DECISION MAKING

• Recommend appropriate solutions to resolve investment operations issues to management.

QUALIFICATIONS / EXPERIENCE

• University degree in Accounting/Business/Finance or related fields.
• 8+ years of experience working in middle office operations, collateral support, trading processing.

KNOWLEDGE & TECHNICAL SKILLS

Business Knowledge

• Solid knowledge of financial products
• Working level knowledge of collateral management, ISDA and CSA documentation is required
• Knowledge of Private Equity and Alternative Credit products is an asset

Technical Skills

• Advanced knowledge of Bloomberg AIM is required
• Investment Accounting Systems (PAM, FAM, Portia, Clearwater, etc) is an asset
• Microsoft Office

Management Skills

• Experience in leading small teams in an Investment Operations environment is preferred.
• Clarity in communication and being an active listener.
• Being empathic with a desire to help others.

COMPETENCIES

• Ability to guide and coach junior member.
• Able to work independently or as part of a team.
• Excellent interpersonal skills.
• Good command of both spoken and written English.
• Understanding inter-dependencies and inter-connections of systems; seeing the big picture rather than the parts.
• Being flexible and adaptable for change.
• Learning from mistakes and desire to improve.