Banking on an In-house Career
How it All Began
During the late 1990s, the U.S. was an exciting place to be as it was the thick of the dot.com boom while Asia was still recovering from the Asian Financial Crisis. Hence, when I was in law school in the U.S., my aim was to get into Biglaw and work on Wall Street. Afterall, that was a common aspiration of most of my classmates save for some who intended to pursue careers in government, public and nonprofit sectors.
When the opportunity came to begin my professional life in an old-school New York firm, I embraced it wholeheartedly and felt very blessed to be able to chase and live my dream in the Big Apple. At that stage of my life, I never thought of life outside of a law firm. I joined the capital markets practice of an old-school Manhattan firm and was fortunate to travel throughout the U.S. to work with clients on their corporate finance needs.
As a young associate, I was given extensive opportunities to work closely with the firm’s bulge bracket banking clients and other blue-chip clients. Despite the brutal hours, I sincerely enjoyed every moment and felt very much that I belonged in a law firm environment as there was so much to learn and I felt privileged to work with so many outstanding professionals.
However, as I started to work more with my clients, there were ample opportunities to join them as an in-house counsel which I started to seriously entertain as I discovered that I had a keen interest in the business side of things, i.e., to participate and take ownership of commercial decisions as well.
The Time Came to Move on
The opportunity finally came when my second employer – a major European institution – came knocking. At that point, I was at a crossroads in my law firm career – should I stay and try to make partner or pivot and go in-house to be closer to the business? At that time, the private banking industry was at the outset of a multi-year growth, and it felt exciting to join a market leader to not only learn but to actively participate in the growth of the wealth management industry in Asia. And so, I took a leap of faith.
Upon hindsight, it was one of the best career decisions I’ve made as I joined an industry I genuinely enjoyed, and was given opportunities to learn, unlearn and relearn, as well as to grow further as a person and a professional. Like my first employer, the firm I joined has tremendous talent and a global mindset. I’ve had the chance to work in many areas of legal and compliance and it has been a privilege to work alongside, and learn from, some of the most brilliant professionals in the industry.
The Story Continues
After many fulfilling and happy years with my second employer, I was offered the opportunity to lead the legal and regulatory compliance functions globally at Bank of Singapore, the private banking subsidiary of Singapore’s longest established bank, OCBC. .
Unlike my previous employer, the current private bank I’m at was only launched in 2010. However, despite our short history, the bank has already grown into one of the leading names in private banking with several awards under our belt. What I enjoy most about my current role is the daily sense of purpose. As the chief lawyer and regulatory compliance officer of a Singaporean firm with global ambitions, I’m very privileged to work with many like-minded and outstanding professionals to lead the bank.
Advice for Others Looking to Have a Similar Career Path
Have an open, curious mindset and always think beyond the legal issues. Learn about the business and the non-legal factors that may impact the outcome of your advice. Read widely.
Be grateful, be humble, do not be afraid to take the path less trodden, have a sense of humour and always be nice. In life, one’s success is never truly one’s own. There are many who have invested their expertise, time and wisdom in us, or perhaps simply said, kind words to cheer us on. So do the same and pay it forward.
To my younger colleagues at the Bar, lawyering can be a very meaningful and fulfilling career. Find an area of law you’ve a passion for and join an organisation – be it private practice or in-house – whose corporate values align with yours. And look after yourself. We have but one life. Let’s make it count!
