Goldman Sachs has a void to fill in its senior ranks, after Tim Leissner, the lender’s Southeast Asia Chairman and one of the longest-tenured bankers in Asia, has relinquished his role and parted ways with the group, according to a Nasdaq statement.
Despite a lengthy banking career in the region, Mr. Leissner was most notable for his work with Goldman Sachs and 1Malaysia Development Bhd. (1MDB), which saw a $3.0 billion bond sale in 2013. In terms of his career trajectory, he ascended to the role of Chairman at Goldman Sachs, relocating to Singapore from Hong Kong, after he replaced L. Brooks Entwistle.
More recently however, Mr. Leissner opted to take personal leave from Goldman Sachs back in January, having relocated back to the US – this ultimately paved the way for a permanent departure from the group, as investigations have heated up surrounding the 1MDB deal. Parallel investigations are being conducted by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation as well as regulatory authorities in Singapore, Switzerland, Hong Kong, and Abu Dhabi following repeated allegations of graft.
While working at Goldman Sachs, he held a variety of senior level roles across the Asian region, including stints as its Vice Chairman of Investment Banking in Asia, excluding Japan. It is unclear where his next destination is or what the immediate fallout will be after the series of probes run their course.
