Ken Foo — Red Octopus
Red Octopus

KEN FOO

Banker · Meditator · Author

CFA MSc Wealth Management Japanese · English · Chinese

Disciplina · Contemplatio · Sapientia

Over two decades spanning sovereign wealth, institutional fixed income, private banking, and entrepreneurship across Asia — Ken Foo has built a career that moves between rigour and reflection.

Trained as a chemical engineer at the University of Tokyo, he went on to earn a Master of Science in Management from Singapore Management University before joining the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC). That foundation — quantitative, disciplined, global — has informed everything since.

From bond trading desks at Merrill Lynch and Credit Suisse in Tokyo, to leading DBS's Japan operations and later its private banking coverage across Malaysia, Thailand, and the Philippines, Ken has spent his career at the intersection of capital markets and deep human relationships.

In 2024 he founded RO Global Capital, and in April 2026, following a Theravada ordination, returned to practice with a clearer sense of what he has always believed: that the most important question in wealth is not how much — but what for.

2024 –
Present

RO Global Capital Pte Ltd

Founder & CEO

Founded a Singapore-based holding group supporting Japanese companies' entry into Asian markets and high-net-worth investment activities. Active in Singapore and Malaysia serving private banking clients for wealth management.

2024 –
Present

Peak Capital Management Pte Ltd

Director & Portfolio Manager

Portfolio construction and management for private clients. Singapore-based, with a focus on Asian and cross-border mandates.

2024 –
Present

Bill Morrisons Capital Pte Ltd

Chief Japan Advisor

Strategic advisory on Japan market entry, partnerships, and capital allocation along the Singapore–Japan corridor.

2022 –
2024

DBS Private Bank

Senior Market Head — Malaysia, Thailand & Philippines

Led private banking coverage across three markets, managing senior client relationships in the high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth segments.

Euromoney · World's Best Private Bank
2019 –
2022

DBS Bank Japan

Japan Country Head

Managed both the Tokyo branch and DBS Securities Japan. Promoted bank SaaS solutions, partnerships with digital banks including Seven Bank, and cross-border remittance business.

2013 –
2018

DBS Bank

Fixed Income Sales — Asian Institutional Investors

In charge of fixed income sales for Asian institutional investors.

2007 –
2012

Merrill Lynch Japan Securities · Credit Suisse Japan Securities

US Treasury & US Mortgage Bond Sales Trader

US Treasury and US mortgage bond sales trading for institutional clients in Japan.

2003 –
2006

GIC — Government of Singapore Investment Corporation

Investment Professional

Joined GIC directly upon graduating from the University of Tokyo. Foundations in sovereign wealth management and institutional investment.

2006

Singapore Management University

Master of Science in Management (Wealth Management)

2003

University of Tokyo

Bachelor of Engineering, Faculty of Chemical Engineering

CFA

CFA Institute

Chartered Financial Analyst