UOB to hire 2,000 in Southeast Asia this year

UOB is planning to hire some 2,000 staff in Singapore and the region this year.

The bank said it would mainly be targeting sales and branch network support growth.

The bank is looking to triple its assets under management -- currently at S$40 billion for individuals with assets of $200,000 and above -- by 2015.

The lender is also targeting 50 per cent of its wealth management business to come from the region - up from the current 20 per cent.

According to a Channel News Asia report, UOB plans to expand its network of wealth management centres from the current 29 to 64, and profit contributions from mass affluent and high net-worth individuals to grow from 35 per cent to 50 per cent by 2015.

UOB reported on-year growth of 42 per cent and is looking to expand aggressively overseas.

UOB deputy chairman and CEO Wee Ee Cheong said: "I'm happy with the result but I think we can do a lot more.

"What we are doing in the region is to integrate our regional branches to create a common platform and we are transforming a collection of banks into a fully integrated region of banks.

"That is important for us because it is win -in for both customer as well as bank and I believe the next few years, the region is the one that will generate a lot of potential benefit for us".