Baillie Gifford, the Edinburgh-based asset management firm with £123 billion AUM, today announced the opening of a marketing new office in Hong Kong.

The new office will enable Baillie Gifford to better service its clients’ needs in the region, the company said.

Angus Macdonald, previously head of group legal, has relocated from Edinburgh to head the operational side of the new company’s office called Baillie Gifford Asia (Hong Kong) Limited.

A senior marketer and other colleagues will join him as the firm seeks to “deepen existing client relationships and develop new business opportunities in Asia”.

David Henderson, partner, Baillie Gifford & Co, and CEO of the new company said: “We have had Asian clients since 1989 and our client base has grown significantly over recent years.

“With regulatory developments opening up new markets within the region and with Asian institutional investors seeking to diversify internationally into the type of strategies that we offer, we believe that now is the right time to be establishing a permanent presence in the region.

“The new office will enable us to meet clients’ needs and to continue to diversify our client base and distribution channels, as we have done over the past 100+ years. It is a recognition that our business does not stand still.”

The office is being established under a Type 1 licence from the Hong Kong regulatory authority, the Securities and Futures Commission, which allows marketing and selling of funds to Hong Kong professional investors.