Eqonex Limited, a digital assets financial services company, is investing in its Asset Management business with new senior appointments in key regions earmarked for growth. Nick Cogswell has been appointed to the role of Head of Sales, Asset Management, based in London, and Franklin Heng, will drive the company’s Asian asset management products strategy as the Head of Asset Management Asia, based in Hong Kong. Both appointments are effective immediately.
Eqonex is directing significant resources and investment into building its Asset Management business, as part of its ambition to deliver a leading digital assets investment platform. Eqonex Asset Management encompasses key business lines including Investment Products, Structured Products, Bletchley Park, a fund of crypto hedge funds, and Lending.
The new hires follow the listing of Eqonex's first exchange-trade product, a Bitcoin Exchange Traded Note (ETN) on the Deutsche Börse XETRA Exchange, earlier this month. Further ETNs are expected to list in the coming months, together with the launch of the Eqonex Structured Products business.
Nick will be responsible for driving growth across the entire Asset Management product suite. Nick joins Eqonex with experience of running his own firm, an FCA regulated investment advisory business where he served as CEO and Managing Director. He brings 20 years’ experience in cross asset derivatives sales and structuring, alternative investments, and global structured products, dealing with Institutional investors.
He was previously the Head of Equity Structured Product Sales EMEA at Jefferies and before that ran the Santander Private Banking Structured Product Sales business for the UK. Nick has also held senior roles at both Lehman Brothers and Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein.
Franklin will be responsible for growing Eqonex's Asset Management footprint in the Asia Pacific. Franklin joins EQONEX after an eleven-year tenure with Springboard Capital, where he was a Managing Partner and nominated Responsible Officer for regulated activities.
Franklin was previously Managing Director, Head of Equity Derivatives and Structured Products Distribution for The Royal Bank of Scotland, leading the Asia ex-Japan business from Hong Kong. His team distributed structured products to institutional and professional investors and advised them on the use of derivatives and structured products to hedge their risk and enhance returns. Prior to this, he spent seven years at HSBC Hong Kong in various roles including Head of Asia Derivatives (trading and sales) and Head of Wealth Management Sales. Franklin brings 30 years of asset management, derivatives and structured products experience, and he is also a qualified Chartered Accountant.
Nick will work alongside Head of Business Development Matthew Clapp, who is also based in London. Prior to joining Eqonex, Matthew was Head of Institutional Business Development at Levendi Investment Management. Matthew has been involved in the Structured Investment arena for over ten years. With his wide-ranging experience across asset classes, he has developed a deep understanding of the needs and demands of a broad investor base.
Nick, Franklin and Matthew will report to Frank Copplestone, Head of Asset Management at Eqonex, who recently celebrated his first anniversary with the company. Frank is a 30-year veteran of Asset Management and Investment Products holding global roles at Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank and Jefferies.
Speaking of the appointments, Frank said: “The last year has been a period of ambitious growth and expansion for Eqonex's Asset Management business, with the listing of our first exchange-traded product in Germany, and the establishment of our strategic partnership with Binance Connect”.
“We see tremendous market opportunities across the globe in the digital asset investments space and we are working hard to become a preeminent Asset Management Platform. We are delighted to welcome Nick and Franklin to this growing, talented and highly experienced team. Their wealth of experience in asset management, equity derivatives and structured products will be invaluable in growing our Asset Management business.”
Nick added: “I am thrilled to join Eqonex and look forward to leveraging my experience in traditional finance to harness the growing opportunities in the digital asset space. EQONEX is reputable in the marketplace for its highly experienced team, so I’m excited to join them in delivering Eqonex's ambitious product roadmap across structured and investment products and also driving growth for Bletchley Park, the fund of crypto hedge funds.”
Franklin commented: “With regulation now finally becoming a reality, Eqonex's commitment to compliance and security, as well as its status as a NASDAQ-listed company, puts it in an ideal position to further differentiate itself from the competition. I am excited to join the team during such an anticipated period of business growth and working with them to define best-in-class digital asset investment products for Eqonex's clients.”