"As a relationship manager in the wealth management industry, you end up being like a client's personal CFO, managing both sides of their balance sheet."

"The opportunity to work closely alongside such clients is like obtaining a free real-life MBA."

"You don't need a finance-related degree at the outset to excel because we prefer to hire for attitude and train for skills."

"A lot of graduate programmes last for two years, without much continuity once a graduate completes the scheme. At HSBC Private Bank, there is continuity in career planning, with mentoring schemes in place, along with continued support in the form of further education, regional talent schemes and the HSBC Group's Next Generation Programme.

"Since coming off the graduate programme in 2005, I have taken on the role of a relationship manager with the Global South Asian Diaspora team, covering clients from the subcontinent.

"As a relationship manager in the wealth management industry, you end up being like a client's personal CFO, managing both sides of their balance sheet. I simply love the buzz of my role because you get direct exposure to high-net-worth individuals. These are people who are captains of industry, movers and shakers whose vision and entrepreneurial spirit have made a difference and created enormous wealth. The opportunity to work closely alongside such clients is like obtaining a free real-life MBA — you get to learn about their various businesses, how they started, the difficulties they faced and how they made it big. Over time, you become their trusted adviser, and clients begin to rely on you for major decisions and for managing their private money.

"During the past week, I have assisted clients in opening commercial banking accounts in Uruguay and Argentina, liaised with our New York office to help finance the purchase of a penthouse in Manhattan, invested in a Special Situations Fund through our London office and restructured a client's existing trust though our Geneva office. Being based in London, I tend to prioritise my work by the time difference — covering Asia when I get into the office in the morning, then Europe, and then the Americas from late afternoon.

"We are already the world's biggest provider of Trust services, extremely strong in our hedge fund and discretionary offering, and we continue to drive our private banking operations onshore. The private bank was generating revenues of less than USD90 million in 1999. Today, revenues exceed USD1 billion.

"You don't need a finance related degree at the outset to excel because we prefer to hire for attitude and train for skills. So don't worry, all the technical training you need will be provided, along with support for professional education through the CFA programme."

View all case studies