Investment platform Saxo has appointed Damian Hitchen as regional head of Asia-Pacific and the Middle East and North Africa.

Hitchen has led Saxo’s MENA business since 2021 and will now take responsibility for developing and further growing the firm’s business across the APAC and MENA regions.

Hitchen has 20 years of experience in the global financial services industry. Before joining Saxo as head of MENA, he was chief executive officer of Swissquote based in Singapore. Prior to moving to Singapore, Hitchen established Swissquote’s regional MENA business while based in Dubai.

With Hitchen in place, Mahesh Sethuraman is appointed Singapore CEO of Saxo. Together with the Singapore leadership team, Sethuraman will be responsible for driving and accelerating the growth of the Singapore business. This includes the business areas that the Singapore office covers. Sethuraman will team up with Thomas Qvistgaard Hansen, deputy CEO and COO, to drive the team and the business.

Sethuraman joined Saxo Singapore in 2018 and previously headed the global sales trading team, responsible for interfacing with retail and institutional clients. With over 15 years of experience in the financial services industry, Sethuraman brings to the role a deep understanding of financial markets, Singapore’s investing landscape, and Saxo’s market-leading range of global investment products.

Together, Hitchen and Sethuraman will succeed Adam Reynolds, previously APAC and Singapore CEO of Saxo. Reynolds steps down after a decade at Saxo, having played an important role in consolidating the firm’s presence in the APAC region.