Standard Chartered Bank's Hong Ziyu: Grasping Certainty in an Uncertain World

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Shanghai in March saw the return of the Formula One Heineken Chinese Grand Prix, with engines roaring at the Shanghai International Circuit, reigniting the city's passion and enthusiasm for racing culture.

During the event, Didier Lam, Global Head of Private Banking at Standard Chartered, who also oversees Wealth Management and Retail Banking in Greater China and North Asia, arrived in Shanghai to participate in a series of local activities and gave an exclusive interview to Wallstreetcn. Born in Fujian, raised in Singapore, currently living in Hong Kong, and fluent in several languages, Didier Lam chatted with us in fluent Mandarin about F1, AI, and his latest observations on the high-net-worth market.

The Balance of Speed, Risk Control, and Innovation

This year, Standard Chartered became an official partner of F1 for the first time, inviting high-net-worth clients from around the world to participate in a series of exclusive experiences.

Speaking about the partnership with F1, Didier Lam shared, “F1 hosts races in 21 countries and regions, and Standard Chartered covers business in 19 of those markets, which has highly overlapping interests. Many global F1 fans have international vision, entrepreneurial spirit, and are active in different markets worldwide—this fits closely with our client base.”

There are also deeper reasons, including the strong alignment of values. F1 teams pursue speed, risk control, technological innovation, and sustainable stability in just the right balance. Standard Chartered similarly values this balance highly.

“No racecar can win the championship by only striving for the highest speed,” said Didier Lam. On the track, speed is key, but the outcome is often determined by risk management, strategy, and handling variables, which is closely related to banking.

Additionally, Standard Chartered sponsors the F1 Academy, an all-female racing series, to support and train more women drivers and continue to explore ways to support the development of young female racers throughout the season. This aligns with the latest trend—female racing talent is beginning to show their potential. Founded in 2023, F1 Academy has rapidly grown into a global platform for women’s racing, with the Shanghai event marking the season’s opening race for this all-female series.

Relying on and Mastering Technology

F1 emphasizes relentless pursuit of technology and innovation, and Standard Chartered also places high importance on investing in AI and technological innovation. As a global banking group, Standard Chartered's commitment to technology is unwavering, and its private banking business follows suit.

Didier Lam revealed that Standard Chartered’s latest round of tech investment has aimed at fundamental restructuring of its service model. AI has moved from backend risk control to frontend client communication and support. AI is now used for anomaly monitoring in cross-border fund transfers, KYC checks for new clients, and integrating banking and fund information in open product architectures—and now, even more, and more timely tools are available.

For example, his first brief every morning comes from the Standard Chartered system aggregating views from various financial institutions.

“Our system can search every investment bank and fund company’s opinions using AI, and provide conclusions to help our financial advisors assimilate and improve.”

“Of course, our research team’s views will clash with external opinions, producing a more comprehensive conclusion.”

Standard Chartered also plans to launch internal AI Agents to help financial advisors enhance skills and serve clients.

Changing Overseas Market Landscape Driven by Chinese Enterprises Going Global

Within Standard Chartered globally, Greater China and North Asia contribute half of the private banking business. The wealth growth and contribution of Chinese clients is particularly outstanding.

This concentration is both an advantage and a challenge. To seize ongoing opportunities, Standard Chartered is investing $1.5 billion to upgrade its service capability, with half going to talent. Standard Chartered hopes future financial advisors will have broader global vision and faster knowledge updating ability, so investing in training young advisors is a must, with recruitment and training of talent with Chinese backgrounds a top priority.

Talent strategy adjustments reflect deeper market changes. “Chinese enterprises going global” and “intergenerational wealth transfer” are today's two most important themes among high net worth Chinese clients.

As large leading enterprises go global, upstream and downstream small and medium companies follow: Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Dubai, Africa... Didier Lam listed the typical needs map for Chinese SMEs: more companies are settling overseas, and Standard Chartered’s New Year event in Kenya last year gathered two hundred Chinese attendees.

This network effect shapes the entry logic for wealth management business: “Initially clients only need accounts—in a given market, they want a market-specific account, then possibly a family account. Once trust with the bank is built, it extends to wealth management.”

With falling interest rates, clients demand more from wealth management products. Standard Chartered’s retail wealth system needs multilayered responses: for instance, QDII funds open international allocation channels, FX trading meets needs for proactive management, and investment-linked insurance attracts conservative funds with relatively high returns. Different markets’ products suit different clients—among entrepreneurs, first-generation creators who understand and have experience in leverage can use leveraged investment flexibly overseas.

Intergenerational Wealth Transfer and Fundamental Logic

Cross-border expansion of business broadens the geographic boundaries of wealth management, while client iteration—the rise of the younger generation—is redefining the core of private banking services.

“The biggest challenge for private banking is how to serve the second generation of family wealth,” Didier Lam admitted.

“Second generation clients are different from their parents. The first generation grew up reading newspapers and trusted the information conveyed by relationship managers. The second generation grew up in international education environments and are much richer in information and knowledge. Our advisors must be well-prepared for this.”

“Chinese clients are good at math, learn rapidly, and are interested in good funds, hedging, and leveraged products. The rise of family offices marks the maturity of this trend—more people are looking at wealth management from a professional perspective.”

The use of family wealth also brings deep adjustments in service models, so banks need to redefine companionship accordingly. Successful members of big families often return to their ‘roots’—building schools, clan halls, and towers in their hometowns. Banks must follow, offering detailed services.

Of course, the fundamental logic of Chinese culture has not changed through generations. “Chinese people value relationships and emotions; the more overseas the investment, the more they want a trusted relationship manager.”

Perhaps this is the source of Standard Chartered’s confidence, having rooted itself in China for nearly 170 years, accompanying Chinese enterprises and individuals as they expand their global footprint.

Risk warning and disclaimerThe market has risks, investment requires caution. This article does not constitute personal investment advice and does not take into account individual users’ specific investment objectives, financial situation, or needs. Users should consider whether any opinions, views, or conclusions in this article fit their particular circumstances. Invest at your own risk. ```