ABN AMRO Appoints Global Head of Trading for Financial Markets

Business Wire, Jan 11, 2001

Business Editors

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 11, 2001

ABN AMRO today announced it has hired Malcolm Wager from Morgan Stanley Dean Witter as Global Head of Trading for its Global Financial Markets business.

Mr. Wager, 36, is one of the most experienced professionals in international financial markets. He has been at Morgan Stanley Dean Witter for 11 years in London and New York. Most recently, he was Joint Head of MSDW's US fixed income derivatives business and Head of US fixed income derivatives trading. Prior to MSDW, he was at Citibank.

At ABN AMRO, Mr. Wager will be responsible for all areas of trading, including money market, foreign exchange, government and credit trading, and all derivative products.

Nils Lorenzen, Head of ABN AMRO's Global Financial Markets Group, said this important appointment completes the new Financial Markets management team and is a key element in the reorientation of Global Financial Markets. The business has been restructured in order to support the objectives of ABN AMRO's new Wholesale Clients business, which from this month is responsible for the integrated delivery of the bank's international corporate and investment banking services.

"We have reorganised the Global Financial Markets business under the key disciplines of origination, trading and distribution, no longer separating the treasury and fixed income activities, and integrating a number of products from the former Structured Finance Unit," Mr. Lorenzen said. "The integration of all trading portfolios is designed to maximise execution on a co-ordinated basis to specifically meet client needs."

Mr. Wager, who holds a joint degree in Economics and Finance with first class honours from Brunel University, starts in February 2001 and will be based in London.

ABN AMRO's Wholesale Clients business is one of the largest European-based investment and corporate banking operations. It employs 20,000 people in more than 50 countries and provides a full range of advisory, financing and operational services to over 10,000 corporate, financial institution and public sector clients worldwide. It has leading positions in a number of major products, including debt capital markets, equity capital markets (through the ABN AMRO Rothschild joint venture), loan syndications, debt and equity trading, foreign exchange, corporate finance, private equity and global trade services.

In North America, ABN AMRO is headquartered in Chicago and has $171 billion in assets and more than 18,000 employees. ABN AMRO serves wholesale clients through 13 cities in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. Other North American affiliates include ABN AMRO Asset Management (USA) LLC; LaSalle Bank in Chicago; Standard Federal Bank in Michigan and EAB in New York.