Diego De Giorgi has left Standard Chartered, where he served as group chief financial officer since January 2024, to join Apollo Global Management as partner and head of Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). He will oversee credit origination, institutional client relationships and capital deployment across the region. Standard Chartered’s London-listed shares fell by as much as 5.6% following the announcement, reducing the bank’s market capitalisation by approximately GBP 2 billion ($2.5 billion). Standard Chartered said deputy chief financial officer Peter Burrill will assume interim CFO responsibilities while the bank conducts a formal succession process. Standard Chartered chief executive Bill Winters, who has led the bank since 2015, has indicated to the board his intention to remain in the role beyond earlier expectations, as reported by Bloomberg. The departure occurs as Standard Chartered reports improving profitability, capital strength and business growth, rather than during a period of earnings deterioration or balance sheet stress. In the third quarter of 2025, Standard Chartered reported underlying profit before tax of $1.99 billion, up 10% year-on-year, while operating income rose 5% to $5.15 billion. Return on tangible equity (RoTE) improved to 13.4%, and the bank maintained a Common Equity Tier 1 ratio of 14.2%. The Global Systemically Important Bank (G-SIB) reported total assets of $913.7 billion, up from $849.7 billion a year earlier, while customer deposits increased to $526 billion from $509 billion. Wealth Solutions income increased 27% year-on-year, supported by $13 billion in affluent net new money inflows, while Global Banking income rose 23%, reflecting continued origination and capital markets activity. Standard Chartered reports full-year results on 24 February. Analysts including Citi’s Andrew Coombs have raised price targets in recent months while maintaining neutral ratings, reflecting improved execution and earnings visibility. Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan have also revised targets higher, indicating expectations for stable profitability and ongoing capital return. Institutional capital continues expanding alongside bank origination De Giorgi joins Apollo, one of the world’s largest institutional credit investors, which manages approximately $938 billion in assets globally across private credit, asset-backed finance and hybrid capital markets, including approximately $155 billion across EMEA. His transition occurs within a credit ecosystem in which banks increasingly originate credit while institutional investors — including private credit funds, insurers and pension capital — hold longer-duration exposures. This structure is supported by regulatory capital frameworks, investor liability profiles and the growing use of credit distribution and structured risk transfer. In recent years, institutional investors including insurers and pension funds have expanded allocations to private credit, contributing to the market’s growth to approximately $1.7 trillion to $2.0 trillion globally, according to the IMF. Non-bank financial institutions now account for nearly half of global financial system assets, according to the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). Banks continue to perform core roles in credit origination, underwriting and client relationships, while institutional capital providers increasingly hold credit exposures through direct lending, asset-backed finance and infrastructure financing. The Financial Stability Board (FSB) has identified private credit as one of the fastest-growing segments of non-bank financial intermediation. Insurance-linked liabilities provide structurally different funding profile Apollo’s credit platform is supported by access to long-duration retirement liabilities through Athene, its affiliated insurance company and provider of annuity products. Insurance balance sheets operate under asset–liability matching requirements and solvency capital frameworks, which govern how assets are allocated relative to policyholder obligations. These structures allow insurers and affiliated asset managers to allocate capital to longer-duration assets aligned with liability profiles while remaining subject to regulatory capital and risk constraints. This funding model differs structurally from bank funding, which is more closely linked to deposit behaviour and liquidity requirements. Regulators monitor leverage, liquidity and valuation risks As institutional credit markets expand, regulators have increased monitoring of several distinct structural risks. Leverage risk relates to fund-level financing structures, which can amplify losses during credit deterioration or funding stress. Liquidity risk arises where investor redemption terms differ from the maturity profile of underlying loans. Valuation risk reflects the less frequent price discovery of private assets compared with traded credit markets. Authorities including the FSB, BIS, Bank of England and European Central Bank have identified these areas as part of ongoing supervisory monitoring. Banks and institutional investors operate as interconnected participants in global credit markets. Banks originate, structure and distribute credit, while institutional investors hold exposures aligned with longer-duration investment mandates. De Giorgi’s appointment represents a senior leadership transition between a global bank and an institutional credit platform, within a financial system in which banks and institutional investors perform complementary roles in credit origination and risk holding.
