HONG KONG — Finsbury has hired Ginny Wilmerding as a partner in Hong Kong, the latest in a series of senior appointments that the WPP firm has made in Asia.

Wilmerding joins after nearly 11 years with Brunswick, where she was also a partner. She brings specific expertise in helping Asian companies navigate critical issues in the US, along with supporting MNCs on their expansion in this region.

Other senior Finsbury appointments over the past 12 months include Tokyo-based partners and office leads Deborah Hayden and Minako Hattori; Tokyo senior advisor Daniel Bogler; Paul Yang as Hong Kong partner and China lead; and Hong Kong partner Richard Barton.

Finsbury’s expansion of its Asia business comes as it prepares to merge with Glover Park and Hering Schuppener, in a deal that will see WPP halve its stake in the combined entity, which will number almost 700 fee earners. 

“We are delighted that Ginny has joined us at such an exciting time in our growth," said Finsbury founder and chairman Roland Rudd. "With our merger next year and ambitious plans for Asia, Ginny and the rest of the Asia team will play a central role in developing our global business."

Wilmerding's Brunswick tenure saw her emerge as a key executive at the firm, working on a number of significant transactions and offerings including Alibaba Group’s $25bn IPO on NYSE, Ant Financial’s $14b Series C financing, the Bain Capital-led acquisition of Toshiba Memory Corporation, CP Group and ITOCHU’s investment into CITIC Ltd, Nokia's merger with Alcatel-Lucent, Swire Pacific's investment to expand its Coca-Cola bottling territories in China, and Chow Tai Fook’s Hong Kong IPO.

"For decades I’ve had a front row seat watching the rise of Asian innovators and giants and advising on the complexities global firms face in this region," said Wilmerding. "At a time when trust between nations is at an all-time low and expectations of corporates is at an all-time high, there is a clear role for a firm like ours that can deliver the very best strategic guidance and ideas."

Wilmerding reports to Finsbury Asia head Ben Richardson, who took charge of the firm in 2016.