HSBC AM Promotes Victoria Sharpe to Global Head of Real Assets

HSBC Asset Management continues to grow its alternatives business, with the manager this week announcing two senior-level upgrades to the leadership of its real assets and private credit teams.

The global asset manager has promoted Victoria Sharpe, its current head and chief investment officer for real estate in Asia Pacific, to head of real assets, which combines its direct real estate and listed infrastructure equity teams. In her expanded role, which began on 6 September, the Singapore-based executive is reporting directly to Joanna Munro, CEO of HSBC Alternatives.

Joining HSBC Asset Management from its parent, HSBC Group, is Scott McClurg, who will take on a newly created role as head of private credit, which includes direct lending and infrastructure debt, according to a press release by HSBC AM. Based in London, McClurg will also be reporting to Munro in his new position which becomes effective on 1 October.

“Last year, HSBC AM announced that it was bringing together all of its existing alternatives  capabilities under a single business unit called HSBC Alternatives, with a 220-strong team  and combined assets under management and advice of $57 billion, as of 30 June 2022,” the company said in a statement. “This is part of its strategy to reposition the business as a core solutions and specialist emerging markets, Asia and alternatives focused asset manager, with client centricity, investment excellence and sustainable investing as key enablers,” an HSBC AM spokesperson added.

Industry Veterans

As head of real assets, Sharpe is retaining her former responsibilities and continues to oversee growth of the firm’s APAC real estate platform. In her expanded role, Sharpe is taking over responsibility from Munro for development and management of the real assets team.

Before joining HSBC, Sharpe built and led the Asia Pacific real estate business for Deutsche Bank affiliate DWS, after serving at TH Real Estate (now Nuveen Real Estate) where she ran the London-based firm’s global client capital group for nearly two years beginning in 2014. Earlier, she spent 16 years with global investment management firm Prudential Investment Management (now PGIM) as head of real estate for Asia Pacific.

In the UK capital, McClurg will be in charge of development and management of the firm’s private credit business, after serving most recently as HSBC’s UK head of leveraged finance for middle market financial sponsors. McClurg joined HSBC in 2010 and has held senior positions in commercial banking including having played a role in the creation of the HSBC senior UK direct lending strategy, which was introduced in early 2021 as part of the firm’s ambition to grow its alternatives capabilities.

Sharpe is “well placed to lead the growth and  development of our real assets business as we seek to scale our current offerings and  provide additional solutions, with a focus on sustainable investments,” said Munro. “Scott brings extensive experience with mid-market companies and  sustainability which will allow us to further develop our private credit capability to deliver sustainable investment solutions and products to our clients,” she added.

Growing Team

HSBC AM’s alternatives unit over the past year continued to add new faces to its senior management team. In its most recent hiring move, the manager appointed Giuseppe Corona, who was recruited from Australia’s AMP Capital, as head of its listed infrastructure equity team in March.

A month before that announcement, the manager appointed John Dewey, who formerly served at Aviva Investors in Paris, as head of alternative solutions for its HSBC Alternatives unit.

In a separate division, HSBC AM continued to expand its team, having appointed Yigit Onat, its chief investment officer for Turkey, as head of its multi-asset business unit for all of Asia in March this year.