Morgan Stanley looks east, focuses on Asia as markets loosen regulations

Morgan Stanley is looking to increase its presence in Asia by wagering on a more promising business outlook and expanding opportunities in deregulated markets.

Gokul Laroia, the company's chief executive officer for Asia, while speaking to Bloomberg, explained the company's pivot to the east.

Morgan Stanley is expanding further into Asia, as the bank had a second consecutive record year in the area, thanks to strong markets, a revitalised Hong Kong IPO pipeline, and increasing trading volumes. Last year, the company's Asia revenue increased by 23% to $9.4 billion.

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While overall investment-banking fees increased by 47% due to a comeback in dealmaking, the New York-based company achieved record annual net profits last year. The company was the best at setting up share sales in Hong Kong.

According to Laroia, a combination of local reallocation and worldwide uncertainty is driving strong volumes across trading desks, particularly in China. Investors are shifting their funds from low-yielding bonds and bank deposits to higher-dividend stocks; this trend was first observed in India and is currently being promoted in Japan.

The company can now handle much larger daily trading volumes thanks to technology, but recruiting is being prompted by expansion in wealth management, the issuance of additional stock, and mergers and acquisitions.

Even while overall investment levels in Asia trail behind the US, the firm's optimism is also fuelled by important themes including artificial intelligence infrastructure, AI adoption, semiconductor supply-chain localisation, and industrial automation, all of which are just starting to take shape.