Darby replaces Asia head

Emerging markets investor Darby Overseas Investments has appointed David Hudson as a senior managing director to head its Asian private equity and global infrastructure operations. He will assume his new role on 1 May and will be based in Hong Kong.

Hudson was previously at Dutch financial conglomerate ING, where in his most recent role he was president and chief executive officer for wholesale banking in the Americas. Prior to that, he was chairman and chief executive officer of ING Bank and ING Securities for Asia Pacific. Before joining ING in 1996, Hudson was a managing director for Asia Pacific at Salomon Brothers, the investment bank. His career began at JP Morgan, where he led the global investment bank’s operations in Asia Pacific.

Hudson will report directly to Darby chief executive officer Richard Frank.

According to a statement, Frank said Hudson’s experience “both in Asia and in infrastructure investing around the world provides a unique opportunity to develop the Darby platform in these two critical and fast growing areas.”

At Darby, Hudson will be responsible for developing the firm’s private equity and mezzanine investment activities in the region, the firm said. The firm currently has three Asia-focussed funds that are managed by teams operating out of Hong Kong, Mumbai and Seoul.

In addition to handling the firm’s Asian private equity operations, he will also take the lead in expanding Darby’s infrastructure-related investment activities worldwide, the firm said in its statement. Darby manages six funds investing in infrastructure in Asia, Central and Eastern Europe, and Latin America.

Hudson’s appointment comes following the departure of Sean Wallace from Darby. Wallace served as the senior managing director responsible for Darby’s Asian private equity operations, a position he left in March to head Standard Chartered’s corporate finance department.