Bank of New York Mellon’s new Asia Pacific chairman says he’s in the right place at the right time. The bank has $27.5 billion in assets and turned a third-quarter profit of $305 million; its primary growth market is Asia. “While the U.S. is looking at an economic downturn, Asia is only looking at slowing growth,” says the executive, Chris Sturdy. “The ongoing global financial crisis will have an impact here, but the overall picture in Asia remains fairly bright.” Sturdy was working in the bank’s Asia Pacific headquarters in Hong Kong as global head of the depositary receipt business when he was appointed regional chairman in May. Mellon’s Asian expansion will include organic growth, strategic partnerships and possibly acquisitions, says Sturdy, a veteran who joined the bank in 1982.
