IPG Mediabrands hires CEO for HK and Taiwan

IPG Mediabrands has hired Ben Kwan as CEO for Hong Kong and Taiwan. He joins from GroupM, where he was MD and board member in Zürich, Switzerland.

The company said Kwan has the demonstrated experience to lead across two high-potential markets. The Hong Kong office last had a CEO in mid-2018, when Kasper Aakerlund was promoted to lead UM for the region from Singapore. The executive team that has led the company since then will remain in place, reporting to Kwan. In Taiwan, MD Maggie Tang left the company last year.

Kwan has experience in the US, China and Europe. Leigh Terry, CEO of IPG Mediabrands APAC called him an "entrepreneurial leader" with demonstrated ability to "harness the collective potential of a team to transform a business model and organisation.”

"His hands on experience in building world-class capabilities across China and internationally blend a deep technology know-how with a business-savvy growth mindset," Terry added. "It’s for this reason we have appointed Ben to lead both the Hong Kong and Taiwan markets.”

Kwan will be based in Taipei, and will report to Terry, effective April 6.