ING is excited to announce the appointment of James Haines as the new Country Manager for Japan. With more than 25 years of experience in the Japanese market, James will oversee ING Japan's operations, focusing on enhancing client relationships and fostering growth in the region.
James brings extensive expertise in banking and financial services, combined with deep local market knowledge. Most recently, he served as General Manager and Deputy Group Head at Aozora Bank, Ltd., where he led the bank's ex-Japan real estate activities and managed relationships with global real estate lenders and investment firms. Before that, James held senior leadership roles at Bank of America, including as Chief Operations Officer for Global Corporate & Investment Banking in Japan and Co-Head of Corporate Credit Risk in Japan. He was also involved in origination and risk management at Shinsei Bank. James started his career in sales and marketing at Hakuto Co., Ltd., a Tokyo-based technology trading company.
James succeeds Riko Kikuchi, who served as country manager for the past three years. Under her leadership, ING Japan strengthened its offerings and set the stage for future growth.
Commenting on the appointment, Uday Sareen, chief executive and head of ING Wholesale Banking for Asia Pacific, said: "James' strong understanding of the Japanese market, paired with his extensive experience in corporate banking and ability to build relationships across diverse industries, will be instrumental as we look to further enhance our presence and deliver value to clients in the region. At the same time, I would like to express our gratitude to Riko for her contributions and wish her every success in her future endeavors".
James holds a Bachelor's degree from Amherst College, a Master's from Columbia University, and an MBA from Duke University's Fuqua School of Business.