• Published on 6 November 2023
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SMBC bolsters Asia Pacific sponsor coverage and structured credit team

Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) has announced the appointments of Junwei Wu and Sukrit Dewan to leadership roles in Asia Pacific as SMBC continues to invest in and expand its specialised lending and coverage platform amid strong growth potential in the region.

Junwei Wu joins as head of Structured Credit Asia Pacific and based in Singapore. He will lead the newly established team, which will provide bespoke debt solutions to corporate, financial sponsor and ultra-high net worth clients across the Asia Pacific region, leveraging the extensive client network of SMBC, its subsidiaries and affiliates. Junwei brings with him over 18 years of experience across private credit, corporate finance, and merger and acquisition (M&A). Prior to joining, he was the head of structuring for Southeast Asia and India at Credit Suisse.

Sukrit Dewan joined SMBC in Hong Kong as head of global sponsor coverage Asia Pacific. In his role, Sukrit will work with our regional and global partners to leverage SMBC’s capabilities to deliver consistent and high quality solutions to the bank’s financial sponsor clients. With over 17 years of experience in banking across Europe, the US and Asia Pacific, Sukrit has also worked at Credit Suisse, Mizuho Bank and Société Générale.

Junwei and Sukrit report to Fabien Banaletti and Taku Kimura, who jointly head the specialised products business in Asia Pacific.

Commenting on the appointments, Rajeev Kannan, co-head of Asia Pacific, said: “These senior hires continue the expansion of our platform in Asia Pacific and is a testament to our growth ambitions and commitment to the region. As we build our regional and global platforms, our ability to provide bespoke and market leading solutions to financial sponsors, corporates and ultra-high net worth clients will be further strengthened."

Fabien Banaletti added: “We are delighted to welcome Junwei and Sukrit to SMBC, as we continue to develop our product range in Asia Pacific and seek more avenues to create value for our financial sponsor and corporate clients. With an enhanced focus on sponsor coverage, SMBC will leverage its extensive product range to provide innovative solutions to our clients, in leveraged finance, infrastructure, real estate, private credit and fund finance.”

Re-disseminated by The Asian Banker