Barclays’ private bank division is set to launch a booking centre in Singapore for its UHNW clients and family offices.
The booking centre, Barclays said, will offer its clients in Singapore access to banking, lending, investments and wealth planning services.
Outlining the rationale behind the launch, the bank cited figures from McKinsey which shows that Asia Pacific is set to become the world’s largest wealth market by 2030 – with an estimated $5.8 trillion of wealth expected to transfer between generations across the region over this time period.
[See also: UHNW Great Wealth Transfer could take decades, BNY says]
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‘The new platform makes it easier for clients to access the full breadth of Barclays’ capabilities through one integrated team,’ said Annabelle Bryde, the head of Barclays Private Bank International.
She added: ‘Whether clients require lending, investment advice or support with complex family wealth and succession planning, we can connect them to the right expertise across the bank.’
Barclays Private Bank also has physical offices in India, Ireland, Monaco, Switzerland and Dubai – with Singapore now added to that list.
[See also: Barclays Switzerland hires former HSBC executive as CEO]
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Singapore’s open access to global markets, institutional expertise and stable legal framework continues to appeal to UHNWs and their advisers.
Barclays’ decision to launch a booking centre there is also indicative of a broader shift among private banks, which are increasingly treating family offices as institutional clients.
That shift is partly being driven from within: some of the top advisers in Spear’s 2026 index of the best family office advisers said offices are increasingly staffed by professionals from hedge funds and asset management, who bring their own expectations around the level of coverage they require.
[See also: World’s billionaires now worth more than $15tn]
The city-state turned 60 last year, and continues to hold the title of the world’s most powerful passport, claiming top spot once again in Henley’s Passport Index for 2026.
A Singaporean passport provides visa-free access to 192 out of 227 global destinations – putting the city-state above Japan, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), all in second place with 188 destinations.
