Kingston takes additional duties with iShares

BlackRock has combined its client business and iShares teams to better serve clients and meet whole-of-portfolio needs. James Kingston has taken on additional duties as head of iShares Australiasia, adding to his responsibilities as head of APAC portfolio analysis and solutions.

Kingston's predecessor, Christian Obrist, has been promoted to lead iShares distribution for Asia excluding Japan. He'll be based in Hong Kong. Chantal Giles, formerly the head of wealth and banks, is taking on an expanded role as head of iShares Wealth (iSW) Australasia.

"As we evolve our business to reflect changing market dynamics and client needs, we are pleased to be able to promote from within and expand the roles of our senior leaders to deliver bespoke solutions to our clients," said BlackRock head of client business for Australasia Jason Collins. "Our ability to work with clients across a range of investment types - index, active, multi-asset and alternatives - and deliver this via various structures, gives BlackRock a unique ability to partner with firms as they seek to curate and provide leading investment options to their end clients."

Rimmo Jolly, head of iShares Asia Pacific, said, "It's exciting to see clients across the region increasingly turning to BlackRock to be their partner of choice for iShares ETFs as portfolio building blocks and whole portfolio solutions.

"We are focused on evolving the delivery of our iShares platform to better meet client needs and look forward to engaging more deeply with clients in Australia."

Kingston has been with BlackRock for just over eight years, the last four in his current role. He relocated from London where he was head of strategy and analytics for Credit Suisse. He's also held roles with RBS Business and ABN AMRO.