JPMorgan to sustain Asia-Pacific hiring as corporate bank revenue surges

JPMorgan Chase intends to maintain its current hiring momentum in Asia Pacific through 2027, following a year of robust growth in its regional corporate banking business. The bank's regional heads, Oliver Brinkmann and Kerwin Clayton, said revenue in this segment has climbed well above 20% year-to-date, driven by Asian firms expanding overseas and rising investment in artificial intelligence, data centres, and supply chains.

This year, the bank is close to completing a roughly 15% increase in its Asia Pacific corporate banking staff, building on a 20% expansion in 2025. The recruitment drive will cover teams serving mid-sized and large companies, the innovation economy, financial institutions, and non-bank financial institutions.

"We intend to continue to hire at a similar pace in 2027," Clayton said. "It's across all of our businesses. It differs throughout the region, but it's in a lot of countries."

Growth has been particularly strong in Taiwan, South Korea, China, and Australia, all of which have exceeded the regional average. Southeast Asia is also expanding by more than 20%, with Malaysia benefiting from foreign investment tied to AI and data centres, while Singapore continues to act as a regional hub.

Brinkmann noted a surge in inquiries for data centre and GPU financing, reflecting the region's active market for AI-related infrastructure. The bank is also increasing capital allocation to trade finance and working capital finance, as intra-Asia trade grows and the bank expands its trade finance operations.